Baby You're a Rich Man

by Brian

Alex Rodriguez has put up astounding numbers throughout his 13-year career, totaling 464 home runs, 1,347 RBIs, 2,067 hits, and a .305 batting average. In his early days as a member of the Seattle Mariners, sportswriters and fans alike swooned over the phenomenal potential he possessed. After three consecutive seasons of at least 41 home runs and 111 RBIs, he became a free agent and signed an astronomical $252 million, 10-year contract with the Texas Rangers to easily become the highest-paid player in all of baseball's history. After three seasons in Texas where he averaged 52 home runs and 132 RBIs, the New York Yankees who had lost infamous third-baseman Aaron Boone to a torn ACL, traded possibly their brightest young star, Alfonso Soriano, and others to acquire Rodriguez and his massive salary. Now entering his fourth season with the Yankees, he has amassed a total of 119 home runs, 357 RBIs, and a .299 batting average.

This being said, it is clear that A-Rod is one of the all-time great players and at only age 32, will go on to accomplish feats that we may not have ever seen before. However, if not for Barry Bonds, Alex Rodriguez has been one of the most highly-criticized and debated player in baseball, and has been subject to the wrath of boo-birds at his home of Yankee Stadium. How is it that such a spectacular player with great numbers in one of the biggest media markets in baseball is being booed by his own home fans? Perhaps the numbers 3, 8, and .221 have something to do with it. Respectively, these are his total home runs, RBIs, and batting average in his 3 postseasons with New York, totaling 20 games. Also taking in mind such incidents as the infamous "slap play" against then-Boston Red Sox pitcher Bronson Arroyo, he has not quite been Mr. October for the Yanks.

The New York Yankees, in terms of World Series championships, are the most successful team by far in Major League Baseball over the last century with 26. Its fanbase expects to be playing in October, and anything less than a World Series title is considered by many a failure. Owner George Steinbrenner is notorious for liberally opening his wallet in order to sign top-tier players for the purpose of winning a championship.

Since the beginning of last season, many experts from ESPN and other sports networks questioned the fans' right to boo Mr. Rodriguez. Numerous Yankee fan forums and blogs say that other fans don't have the right to boo A-Rod, and that they are not "true Yankees fans" for booing him. Being a Red Sox fan, I can say that I don't know what it is like to be a Yankee fan, nor do I know what being a "true" Yankee fan entails. But I do know what it is like to spend money on my favorite sports teams.

When the owner of a team writes out checks the size of the ones they give out to PGA Tour tournament winners to get all-star players, the prices of tickets, concessions, and merchandise among many other things skyrocket in order to compensate. When the owner explains to the fanbase that their ticket prices are going up because of these ridiculous salaries, doesn't this essentially mean that the Yankee fans themselves are indirectly paying the crazy salaries of players like Alex Rodriguez?

The point is this: in a market like New York where players are expected to thrive in big games, paying customers have every right in the world to boo an underachieving player in such situations like Alex Rodriguez, a player who has as big a part in raising the cost of enjoying a baseball game as anybody in history. I'm all for supporting players even through slumps, but it's about time that the baseball universe decides enough is enough, that A-Rod is responsible for his poor clutch play, that no longer should he expect the paying fans to unconditionally support him, and that he can't complain any longer about fans not supporting him. For Alex Rodriguez, he is at the point of no return. He must step up in the big games or else his time with the Yankees is doomed. It's time for A-Rod to put up or shut up.

Football Jargon Explained

by Brian


Let's face it: sometimes the sport of football can downright confuse some people with its seemingly endless lexicon of terms. There are some especially confusing terms which describe trick plays, as we saw in the 2007 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl where Boise State defeated Oklahoma due in part to a slew of trick plays. I've been assigned to help the common man understand some of these trick plays.

1. The Hail Mary
Though not a trick play, this term can confuse people. A "Hail Mary" is the coined term for a desperate, long pass attempt, usually in the closing seconds of a half or a game.

2. The Hook and Ladder
The "hook and ladder" is a pass to a wide receiver who runs a curl route. Another receiver's job is to run a streak by him. The receiver who made the catch pitches it to the already-going-full-speed second receiver. Surprise is the key element that catches the defense off-guard.

3. Statue of Liberty Play
The "Statue of Liberty play" is a fake pass by the quarterback, who holds the ball down near his hip in his non-throwing hand. While the quarterback is faking the throw, the running back takes the ball out of the quarterback's hand and takes off with it.

4. Flea Flicker
The "flea flicker" is a relatively simple trick play. The quarterback hands off to the tailback as if it was a running play. However, the tailback then pitches it back to the quarterback who then proceeds as if it were a pass play all along.

5. Play Action Pass
The "play action pass" is also a simple trick play, in which the quarterback fakes a handoff to the running back, then proceeds as if it were a pass play all along.

6. Halfback Direct
The "halfback direct" is also very simple. The quarterback and running back line up in a shotgun formation (both a few steps behind the offensive line, and next to each other). Instead of snapping it to the quarterback like usual, the center snaps the ball to the halfback who takes off running with it.

There you have it, I hope I have been able to help you so that at the next tailgating party you can feel comfortable knowing what your football-savvy friends are talking about.

The Top 5 - 2nd Edition

The Top 5 Best Sports (and Sports-Related) Commercials (currently running)
(in no particular order)
by Brian

1. Tom Emanski's videos
It is not possible to leave this commercial out. Running since the early '90s, Mr. Emanski has one of the longest-running sports commercials in the history of television. These videos will make your kids play better. Tom would know, he led AAU teams to back-to-back-to-back AAU national championships. Oh, and they're endorsed by Fred McGriff. Cheap grandpa hat's off to this dynasty.


2. Miller Lite's "Man Law" commercials
These are hilarious. There's not a ton more to say about them. It's extremely well-casted, and I really do like the chemistry they all have with each other, with Burt Reynolds as the leader. Plus, one of my personal heroes, Aron Ralston, appears in some of them. Google him if you don't know him. Excellent work, Miller.

3. Coors Light's Press Conference commercials
These are very well made. It's still very hard to tell whether or not they took actual clips of press conferences and edited them in. It doesn't really matter, because they're just as hilarious either way. And you cannot tell me that it produced one of the best commercial facial expressions ever, thanks to Bill Walsh.

4. ESPN's SportsCenter TV commercial franchise
These are hands down some of the most hilarious sports commercials ever, making people believe that ESPN anchors and athletes all mingle in the same place. Not to mention they're all such clever commercials dealing with actual aspects of the athletes' personalities and anchors' quirks. Typical, ESPN makes a good product. Hmm...

5. Just for Men Haircolor featuring Walt "Clyde" Frazier and Keith Hernandez

This is not necessarily a good commercial. It deals with the ridiculous concept of Big Brother-type spying by former athletes, who run a play-by-play and color commentary of poor "Mr. Graybeard" trying to get a date. "Reeeeeeeeeee, jected!!!!!!" Such overacting, but such fun. Thanks, former All-Stars.

Honorable Mention: Reebok's Terry Tate, Office Linebacker
This only gets an honorable mention because it's not currently running. But, this provided one of the most side-splitting sports commercials in the history of all mass communication.

Integrity and Character

by Paul

By January 15th, 2007, the Baseball Writer's Association of America will have elected a new class of spectacular athletes into the Baseball Hall of Fame. According to the Hall of Fame's website, voting is based on "the player's record, playing ability, integrity, sportsmanship, character, and contributions to the team(s) on which the player played." Out of the previously stated qualifications, the two controversial words continue to be integrity and character.
According to Merriam-Webster's Dictionary, integrity is defined as, "adherence to a code of values." In the same dictionary, character is defined as, "moral excellence."
Though the above definitions are only clearly ambiguous, I can mention one phrase that defines neither integrity nor character:

"I am not here to talk about the past."

Mark McGwire, the former slugger for St. Louis Cardinals and Oakland Athletics, is on this year's list of possible candidates to be enshrined in Cooperstown. McGwire has fantastic career numbers. He is seventh on the career home run list with 583. He was Rookie of the Year in 1987, won the World Series in 1989, earned a Gold Glove in 1990, and played in 12 all-star games. In the magical 1998 season, McGwire set the single season home run record by passing Roger Maris on his way to 70 round-trippers. The record, later broken by Barry Bonds, is widely viewed as the greatest personal mark across all sports. McGwire, along with Sammy Sosa, saved the game of baseball from years of striking and fans tiring of players versus owners arguments. McGwire and Sosa ushered in a new era in Major League Baseball: The Home Run Era.

Mark McGwire also ushered in a more conspicuous era: The Steroid Era.

During that 1998 season, a writer for the Associated Press, Steve Wilstein, observed a bottle of Androstenedione, the dietary supplement known as Andro, on a shelf in McGwire's locker. At the time, Andro was deemed illegal by the NFL and the IOC, but was not banned in Major League Baseball. However, it was later named a banned substance in the league and banned from sale by the United States Food and Drug Administration. Wilstein, the reporter, found the evidence that Big Mac's mammoth physique was not all natural. Instead, McGwire used a steroid that causes impotence, atrophied testicles, and liver disease, according to the FDA website. It is especially dangerous to children as it can induce premature puberty and close the growth plates of long bones. In other words, if boys and girls take Andro like Big Mac did in order to get big, it is likely they will never reach adult stature.

On March 17, 2005, professional baseball players, including McGwire, were asked to testify in a Congressional hearing on rampant steroid use in baseball. After Jose Canseco's incendiary book Juiced was published, public outcry rang through the halls of Congress and in baseball Commissioner Bud Selig's office for changes to be made.

After Sammy Sosa and Rafael Palmeiro told the congressional panel that they did not use steroids, McGwire faced the less-than-scathing questoiners. Mark McGwire did not face the questions with the grace that Sammy did in pretending not to understand English, or the forcefulness of Palmeiro. Period. According to cnn.com, when Big Mac was asked by St. Louis congressman William Clay if he could tell fans he played "with honesty and integrity", McGwire answered, "I'm not going to go into the past or talk about my past. I'm here to make a positive influence on this." McGwire went on to echo that refrain several times and added, ""My lawyers have advised me that I cannot answer these questions without jeopardizing my friends, my family and myself." While exercising his Fifth Amendment right per say, McGwire did jeopardize his chance of getting into the Hall of Fame.

Because Mark McGwire could not answer Congressman Clay's question about "honesty and integrity," Hall of Fame voters cannot select him for Cooperstown. If voting was based on solely on numbers, records, and wins, McGwire would be deserving. However, in following election criteria, McGwire's big bronze head will never be found in the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Hail Mary! (Mother of all passes)

by: Josh

"Da Bomb is in." Football Sunday's have gotten more exciting during the 06-07 NFL season. Highlight reel, breath-taking plays have lined the short halftime shows, giving fans a reason to stick around the T.V. during halftime instead of heading off to the kitchen. With defenses getting smarter and faster, screens and option plays have no longer become viable options, that have made playoff teams successful in recent years.

The jury on possession receivers is out and the era for speed receivers has begun. Plays over the sixty yard mark have been numerous as I look over the stats every Tuesday morning. There have even been an increase in plays over 80 yards (including two eighty-three yard bombs to the Bills Lee Evans, which ironically matches his number)that have fantasy players going goo-goo. New hands off rules have given receivers an advantage at making bigger plays and have made them more consistant in the fantasy world. Having speed receivers on your fantasy team can almost assure you atleast one 50+ yard play, tied in with some pay dirt, once a week. Players such as; Chad "Ocho Cinco" Johnson, Steve Smith, and surprise rookie Marques Colston have cashed in handsomely with the new laws and will probably be rewarded off the field in the near future.
So ladies and gentlemen, get your speedsters started because they'll be in for awhile. And for all you fantasy basement dwellers that picked LaMont Jordan in the first round, you've learned your lesson. Pick the speedy guys with a quarterback who has a live arm and you'll be golden next season. So all-in-all remember that "Da Bomb" is in.