Welcome to the first installment of my new weekly sports column “Bobby’s World.” I’m hoping to make this a regular column that will appear on my blog every Saturday afternoon, which will recap the week mainly in sports and a quick dabble in politics. Hopefully you will enjoy reading, and feel free to drop a comment on which sections that you like or dislike. I will probably be making plenty of changes to this column throughout the year.
Headlines
In this section, I’m just going to digest three-to-five headlines and give my two cents about them.
College sports: Pay for play?
Players are being investigated, and caught more than ever for accepting improper benefits, which is causing several major football and basketball programs across the nation to be sanctioned. The root of all these problems is the question, should college athletes be paid?
I don’t buy it. A scholarship suffices the need for 98 percent of college athletes, preventing them from breaking amateur rules and taking improper benefits. Yes, I agree it's tough for a player to turn down getting paid for an autograph, or receiving a free tattoo. But, what makes a college athlete entitled to receive more free benefits when they are already awarded a free college education?
In a time with more students taking student loans, high tuition prices, and a high average cost of living, I have no sympathy that an athlete is denied from making any extra money. If they are a special talent, they will turn to the professional ranks and make their money that way. Another problem with the “pay-for-play” idea is how would go about paying all of the college’s athletes. This argument was tailor-made for football and men’s basketball players, but what about volleyball, tennis, track, swimming, etc.?
Tim Tebow was the face at the University of Florida, and although his jersey was the number one sold at the school, he didn’t receive payments just because it was his jersey. If you argue that he should be paid because it is his jersey, do you think you will hear any sympathy arguments from the men and women who are working multiple jobs to pay for their college education? Do you think that the students that will be ridden with years of debt from student loans care if he is making any extra money?
Again, I don’t see the big reason for college athletes to be paid. If an athlete’s family is struggling to make it through this economy, I doubt he would be the only one on campus that is struggling.
The media has driven this issue up because of the numerous agents and athletes trying to sneak around the NCAA to make money, but they represent such a small portion of college athletes. They may be some of the most popular athletes, but they don’t represent every fish in the ocean.
Another idea on how to pay college athletes was suggested by Air Force football coach Troy Calhoun, highlighted in Pat Forde’s article against paying college athletes. Calhoun brought up the idea that athletes should be paid about a $2,000 stipend after they graduate. However, why should only athletes be rewarded for graduating? That should be expected because every other student in the school is striving for graduation as well.
I’m against preferential treatment for athletes and I don’t think that they should be paid. As the old commercial use to say, 99 percent of athletes turn professional in something other than sports. We shouldn’t change the rules for the one percent that are.
Dodgers are doomed
After moving from Brooklyn to Los Angeles, the Dodgers are the royalty of the west coast. The most storied franchise in California has been dealt a major blow, possibly knocking them off of their throne. Although the Dodgers haven’t been as competitive in recent years, it is nothing compared to the embarrassment that the McCourt’s divorce is causing right now.
A Delaware judge ruled Friday that he would reject the Dodgers’ proposed $150 million bankruptcy financing plan, and MLB’s commissioner Bud Selig wrote a scathing letter towards owner Frank McCourt.
MLB rejected a multi-billion TV deal with Fox Sports that McCourt was hoping to use to pay off his debt. However, MLB didn’t want McCourt to be ending old debt with new debt and thus staying in the same position while also adding stress to its main television provider. Also Selig wanted the Dodgers to hold leverage, as its deal with Fox doesn’t expire until the end of 2012, which would make it an attractive luxury to any television provider.
Selig wrote to McCourt, “Despite your pledge to make the Dodgers the ‘best franchise in baseball,’ you are not selling the club’s media rights … to improve the club’s on-field performance, renovate Dodger Stadium or enhance the fan experience.” McCourt is also being investigated by the IRS specifically for his tax returns from 2006 to 2008.
McCourt does not want to negotiate with MLB because he believes that Selig is attempting to take control of the team and force a sale. Last week, McCourt fired former Dodger and San Diego Padre great Steve Garvey for plotting to become the next majority owner of the Dodgers.
McCourt is in a vicious divorce with his ex-wife Jamie, whom they fought for ownership of the Dodgers along with other important items.
The ones impacted by these proceedings are mainly the team and the fans. The Dodgers can’t be buyers in free-agency due to the problems with ownership and the fact that they can’t add any more money. Employees of the Dodgers have complained that some of their checks have been bouncing, which is not the publicity that storied franchise such as the Dodgers needs, and in this economy, won’t make many employees happy. The fans are suffering because the Dodgers aren’t competitive this season. Currently, Los Angeles is 13 games under .500 and 13.5 games back in the NL West division.
What is even more unfortunate for the Dodgers is their lack of a strong farm system. The only way that they will be able to improve in the next couple of years will be through trades and free agency. However, if they don’t have money to spend for the next year, they won’t be improving at all and will be falling behind the rest of the National League. Once this drama is settled, the new general manager is going to have a long and tall task ahead of him to improve the Dodgers, especially since Los Angeles isn’t the most patient town for production (unless you are the LA Clippers).
The Dodgers and their fans deserve much more than they are receiving right now from the ownership point of view. MLB should impeach Frank McCourt from owner of the team, and allow Mark Cuban or any other investor an opportunity to own the Dodgers, and give the team a better chance to compete on the field, increase the fan experience, and revitalize the storied history of the franchise.
Owners and NFLPA still don’t have a deal
After an owners vote Thursday, NFL fans began to get excited for the upcoming season, after NFL owners locked out their players on March 12th. Although there were several court rulings over last couple of months, fans waited patiently for the final good news that would start the season again. With the owners vote on Thursday, fans thought they finally heard the news they were waiting for.
Well unfortunately, the NFLPA was shocked at the owners vote and still are not as close as previously thought. Although the NFL season should start up soon, this labor dispute is ridiculous in my mind.
Unlike most of the other major sports, the NFL is on the meteoric rise. They made over $9 billion last year, and I don’t expect that number to fall any time soon. However, this dispute is more over how to split that $9 billion compared to the NBA, who is trying to make more money to break even for all of the teams losing money.
Everybody knew an NFL season was going to happen, there was too much to lose and not much to win with a prolonged dispute. Without a season, fans would flock to other sports (i.e. MLB’s strike in 1994 lost fans that still haven’t returned).
With a season, the NFL stands to make at least $9 billion more dollars to split between the two. However, my only problem is the fact that NFL owners and the NFLPA took so long to get close to a deal when really there is no losing side in this dispute.
Another problem I have with this dispute is the tactics that each other attempted to gain the side of the public. The owners approved nearly unanimously to the proposed CBA (collective bargaining agreement) on Thursday, which excited the fans. However, the NFLPA said the owners changed the terms of the proposed CBA and weren’t going to vote and explained, successfully, to the public that the owners were guilty of dirty tactics and shouldn’t be trusted.
I don’t know who is right in this argument and don’t have a side of the fence that I want to stand on. Its just this labor dispute has gone on far too long about nothing, and I, along with millions of fans, want to see the NFL underway. The NFLPA and owners should be less concerned on the winners of the future CBA in the public’s eyes, and more concerned about just playing football.
Blyleven and Alomar enter Hall of Fame
Two different sides of the spectrum will be entering the Hall of Fame Sunday. Roberto Alomar, one of the best second basemen in baseball history, garnered 90 percent of the votes in his second year of eligibility. On the other side, Bert Blyleven, one of the best strikeout pitchers with his devastating curveball, grabbed 79.7 percent of the vote in his 14th season on the ballot after missing the Hall of Fame by only five votes last year.
Alomar may have been robbed of an induction last year because of the incident in September of 1996 when he spit on an umpire. However, nobody can dispute the fact that Alomar is one of the best second basemen to play baseball with 12 consecutive All-Star appearances, 10 gold gloves, 2,724 hits, 474 stolen bases, and that he won two World Series.
Blyleven received little support when he first was up for vote for the Hall of Fame (17.5 percent and 14.1 percent in his first two years). Blyleven was only inducted into two All-Star games, and in the top-3 for the Cy Young Award twice. Although he struck out 3,701 batters, he won just over 53 percent of his games (287-250).
However, thanks to statistics beyond wins-and-losses, many voters saw Blyleven now as better pitcher than they did when he first entered the ballot. For this reason, it justifies the reason why players appear on the Hall of Fame ballot for 15 years (as long as they receive 5 percent of the vote).
Although both Hall of Famers entered at different perspectives from their careers, the voters made the right decision in voting both of them in. Alomar will always be one of the best second basemen that I had the pleasure of watching, and Blyleven, although I was never able to watch him pitch, showed that Sabermetrics (advanced baseball statistics), will be the new way players are judged on their careers.
Next year’s class may not have any players reach the coveted Hall of Fame with a weak incoming class. The best player eligible for the 2012 ballot is Bernie Williams, but he doesn’t have the numbers to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer. Barry Larkin should inch closer to the 75 percent vote that he needs to be inducted, but I think the 12-time All-Star may be forced to wait another two-to-four years.
Larkin deserves to enter the Hall of Fame but the upcoming classes bring in some big names that may steal the spotlight and votes from Larkin. In 2013, Craig Biggio, Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Mike Piazza, Curt Schilling, and Sammy Sosa are going to collect all of the attention, especially Bonds and Clemens. It doesn’t ease up over the next three years (2014-2016) with the likes of Tom Glavine, Greg Maddux, Mike Mussina, Pedro Martinez, Randy Johnson, John Smoltz, Trevor Hoffman, and Ken Griffey Jr. becoming eligible.
Games at a Glance
This spot in my column is to look at last week’s important games, and a look towards next week’s matchups that are worth paying attention to. Because it is the first week of this column, I will take a look at the MLB standings and give a quick breakdown before highlighting next week’s matchups.
AL East: The top two records in the American League belong to the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees. No surprise there, but after a dismal start the Red Sox should be considered the favorite to win the AL pennant. The Tampa Bay Rays lurk from behind, but I think they are too far away (8.5 games) to make a run to the top.
AL Central: I’m shocked about how bad this division is this year. Detroit and Cleveland are at the top but both show signs that they could fade into the back at any moment. I think Detroit will stay at the top by the time the season ends. White Sox and Twins aren’t too far behind, but White Sox have better hitting that could heat up in time to provide an opportunity to win the division.
AL West: The Texas Rangers showed that losing Cliff Lee wasn’t the end of the world, and that they could return to the World Series. The L.A. Angels are doing much better than I thought they would fare this season, but I like Texas a little bit better due to last year’s experience.
NL East: The Philadelphia Phillies stand atop the division, which every person in the world thought they would. The Atlanta Braves are in prime position to win the wild-card, and should be able to pull it off after they have been so successful throughout injuries this season. Fredi Gonzalez has done an underrated job as manager for the Braves.
NL Central: This division has been awful this season, which means several teams have a chance to stand at the top by the end of the season. The Milwaukee Brewers and Cincinnati Reds are my favorites to battle it out because the Brewers have the firepower to compete every night and have solid pitching. The Reds’ have been inconsistent this season but they are completely capable of heating up to win this division easily. The Pittsburgh Pirates are the best story in baseball this year, but are still two years away for contending for a World Series, due to overachieving pitchers. The St. Louis Cardinals are in the mix, but I’m not a huge fan of their pitching and bullpen.
NL West: The defending World Series champions San Francisco Giants are in the driver’s seat and should have a strong chance of competing with the Phillies for the NL pennant. Arizona is performing much better than they should and Colorado has been disappointing this season.
Next Week:
Pittsburgh at Atlanta, July 25th to July 28th: If the Pirates want to be known as a contender, they need beat a major contender on the road.
Detroit at Chicago White Sox, July 25th to July 27th: This series, in Chicago, will decide whether Detroit takes a commanding lead at the top of the AL Central, or the White Sox will be storming back to the top.
San Francisco at Philadelphia, July 26th to July 28th: Both teams are atop of the division, and this could be the match-up for the NLCS. It will be interesting to see which team takes the momentum.
Standing on the Hill
In this section of my column, I will break down one issue in politics (two this week due to the debt ceiling talks), or I will explain my own views and the reasons I feel that way. Eventually I want to break down Presidential candidates in this section.
Debt Ceiling Talks Fail
In one of the more simple tasks for Congress in the past couple of decades is causing uproar in Washington thanks to the people. Before I bring up my feelings towards Capitol Hill and the White House on the current debt negotiations, I want to state that the debt ceiling would not be an issue without the Tea Party.
Republican Ronald Reagan raised the debt ceiling 19 times under his presidency. George W. Bush raised the debt ceiling nine times under his presidency. Neither of them faced any opposition towards raising the debt ceiling.
Although President Obama is spending more than any president before him (although that doesn’t count for inflation), the only reason that the debt ceiling is an issue right now is because the Tea Party raised a fuss about it.
Now, to my feelings toward these negotiations, which fell apart on Friday and spurred Obama to rip Republicans and its Speaker of the House John Boehner in a press conference. It is almost agreed across the board that a short-term agreement is not going to work and to cut the deficit is going to take some large cuts for the future.
Republicans and Democrats agreed on a number of points for their debt negotiations. First, they agreed $800 billion in revenue increases and certain entitlement reforms. The revenue increases would be fixing the loopholes in the tax code, and entitlement reforms would also be fixing some loopholes.
However, they disagreed over an additional $400 billion in revenue hikes (taxing the rich), and how deep cuts should be made to Medicaid.
The plus when these debt talks fell apart Friday was that the markets had already closed on Friday, not letting a major market fallout begin. However, that adds to the pressure for Congress and the White House to agree to a deal before the market re-opens on Monday.
Although Obama promised to veto any short-term extensions in the past, he is now open to an extension that would last throughout his term into 2013, in order for the United States not to default.
The problems that will ensue after the United States default are not currently known, but nothing positive has an opportunity of happening, yet the negative problems for the market could be endless.
Thus, the pressure increases when the lawmakers meet on Saturday and throughout the weekend. My problem is that Republicans are going to receive the large part of this deal, yet still are aiming for a larger piece of the pie in this deal. Nobody wins if a deal is not made between the two sides and the American people are going to be the ones suffering.
However, Obama has no leverage in this deal. If the United States defaults, and Republicans can efficiently blame him for the lack of economic growth, he will not be re-elected, and the GOP will control Congress and the White House. For Obama to win in this situation, he has to broker a deal between the two sides and see economic growth as a part of these negotiations.
While I agree that nobody in Washington wants to see the United States default, I think one side knows they have the leverage to force the other side into a one-sided deal. The only question is how far they will push their leverage. Here’s to hoping that economic growth can transpire from a bi-partisan agreement.
Obama repeals “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”
Lost yesterday after the debt ceiling talks became the top story, President Barack Obama certified the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military once it takes effect in 60 days.
Although gay marriage is the largest issue for the LGBT community right now, this is an important step for the United States and its government towards equality for all. For those who supported “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” I just want to raise the question, what problems does serving in the military, which is one of the toughest decisions and largest sacrifices for a young man or woman, occur to people that are gay or lesbian compared to heterosexual?
I’m predicting that this era with restrictions against the LGBT community is going to be embarrassing for future generations. I want to remind everyone that African-Americans and whites couldn’t attend the same school until the Brown v. Board of Education decision was made less than 60 years ago. Most African-Americans couldn’t vote until the Civil Rights Act of 1964, less than 50 years ago. The same Civil Rights Act included Title IX, which you can argue whether it is effective for college sports, but you can’t deny that women gained some rights that they deserved through the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Whether people want to argue on gay marriage or not, I think it’s an extremely different issue than serving openly in the military, where these young men and women made incredible sacrifices to serve their country.
I will probably address gay marriage in this column eventually, but in this week’s I’d like to commend President Obama for ending an outrageous policy in the military and working more towards equality for all human beings.
Story time
This section will either be a story from my personal life that I want to share with everybody, or it will be a place that I deal with my pet peeves in a social norm. By the way I say social norms, I will detail a situation in which that needs to be addressed and changed (such as people waiting to get on an elevator should wait until the people in the elevator are all the way out of it).
A few weeks ago, I interviewed Peoria Chiefs’ outfielder Rubi Silva, which was on video and placed on this blog. After researching Silva and watching him in his first couple of weeks, I decided that wanted to interview the outfielder signed from Cuba in Spanish. Well, I didn’t figure that I wouldn’t be able to learn slang and be able to understand him quick enough to do it all by myself, which is why I used a translator to translate his answers back to English.
Now what has to make it tough for the international players in the minor leagues is the lack of friends and family that will visit you during the season. Also, I imagine it has to be extremely difficult to speak a language that isn’t popular in the area. Thus, I was happy to receive a comment on YouTube this week from Silva’s father saying how proud he was of Rubi. I haven’t been able to talk to Silva about the message yet, because the team is currently on a road trip but I’m glad that my interview made it all the way to Chile (that’s where the Youtube profile said he was), and that he has a medium to reach his son. Although it was brief, it was one of the most extremely rewarding experiences that I’ve had in my short career in sports.
Random stat of the week
Albert Pujols hit his first professional career home run in 2000 with the Peoria Chiefs, against the Kane County Cougars (then-affiliate of the Florida Marlins) on April 6th. Who was the pitcher that offered up Pujols first home run of his professional career?
That honor belongs to current Boston Red Sox pitcher Josh Beckett.
5 Rants of the week:
In this portion of my column, I will discuss five things that just really frustrate me or changes that I would like to see in sports, politics, or just life in general.
1. Although NFL players have turned the public’s opinion to worry about their health more than ever. As a fan, I still selfishly want to see 18 games played in the regular season. Who wouldn’t love two more weeks of football (or two less weeks of meaningless preseason games)?
2. I’m truly sick of politics being entirely based upon ideologies. A compromise is defined as an agreement or a settlement of a dispute that is reached by each side making concessions. To everyone on Capitol Hill: it’s time to make progress without the “my way or the highway” approach.
3. When I’m paying outrageous prices for a flight on an airplane, I would like more than one tiny bag of peanuts, pretzels, or a cookie. Is it that tough to give me a standard bag? I’ll even take fruit snacks.
4. Dear media,
I don’t care where Casey Anthony is staying after she was released from jail. The only people that do care are the nuts trying to harm her. She will speak eventually through a book or television interview, and get an extra 15 minutes of fame. Put the media frenzy to rest.
5. What is with the new Facebook chat? I don’t even understand how use it, and now it takes up a huge block on the side of my page. This is why I have converted to Twitter (you can follow me: @nightengalejr).
Quote of the Week:
Usually this will be filled with a political or sports quote, but because this is my column’s introduction week, I want to put one of my favorite personal quotes.
“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who’ll decide where to go.”
-- Dr. Seuss
Again, this is my first shot at this new column, so please give any feedback on what you liked or disliked. Thanks for reading and I hope you continue to read this column every Saturday afternoon.
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