WBC
In a lot of ways the World Baseball Classic created some magical moments.
For baseball. During spring training.
The U.S. captured its first WBC title, and if the minuscule success-monster reaction ratio that the men's soccer team gets when it occasionally wins a World Cup match has taught us anything, it's that Americans love to root for 'Murica.
U-S-A! U-S-A!
And that's cool and how it should be.
The U.S. capped its tournament run with an 8-0 win over Puerto Rico, which is part of the U.S. so in some ways ti would be like rooting for the U.S. to be Montana. Either way, it was a fun experience.
A large part of that fun was the emotion and energy brought to the various games from the various countries, including the large number of Hispanic countries that brought a much livelier and colorful approach to the game.
There were celebrations of big plays. There were bat flips. There was some dancing out of the box. There was even a shortstop catching a perfect throw, pointing to celebrate with his catcher, and then making the tag at second base to catch the stealing runner.
It was great. Until it wasn't.
Enter U.S. second baseman Ian Kinsler, who dropped this funless gas-baggery on festivities: I hope kids watching the W.B.C. can watch the way we play the game and appreciate the way we play the game as opposed to the way Puerto Rico plays or the Dominican plays. That's not taking anything away from them. That just wasn't the way we were raised. They were raised differently and to show emotion and passion when you play. We do show emotion; we do show passion. But we just do it in a different way.
First, the indirect racism there is hard to ignore. What if he was a white basketball player and said that about inner-city point guards? What if he was a white white quarterback and said that about his wide receivers?
Secondly, correct me if I'm wrong, but these 'unwritten rules of the game' mumbo-jumbo may not be as flamboyant as the bat flips and finger wags of the other countries but it is inherently more dangerous. At every level.
I would much rather have a kid get super excited about making a play - even to the verge of potentially crossing the line - than have some wanna-be-big-leaguer thing the 'game was insulted' and throw at a 12-year-old. Which also brings us to the simple fact that this tired, old way of playing baseball and it's 'code' - or as Kinsler insultingly put it "the way we play the game" - means that bat flips are bad, but assault with a deadly weapon is OK. (And yes, that's a little hyperbole, but just a little. The biggest hurt a bad flip causes is hurt pride, what happens when a 90-mph heater meant for the middle of the back rides a little high and hits some one in the temple?)
Finally, take the insults and the intent to injure out of it, and Kinsler is still wrong and if powers that be in baseball believes that it needs to maintain this stoic, antiseptic approach that is as much fun as an insurance seminar, well, they are writing their own death sentence.
No, bat flips won't save the game, but in a time when baseball should be looking for very fun way possible to connect with younger fans, acting like celebrating on the field in meaningful moments is against the moral fabric of the game is at best stupid.
And in Kinsler's case, it's racism, and after he homered and waved to his teammates in the dugout on Wednesday, could be viewed a little hypocritical.
FILE - In this Wednesday, Feb. 1, 2017, file photo, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell answers questions during a news conference during preparations for the NFL Super Bowl 51 football game in Houston. Don Van Natta Jr. and Seth Wickersham, prize-winning investigative reporters from ESPN, are working on a book about Goodell, team owners and the “momentous power struggles” that shape the league. Crown Archetype told The Associated Press on Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2017, that it had acquired the book “Powerball.” (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File) NFL make some changes
How much should every sport be looking at itself and wondering ways to make its product and more importantly the viewing experience of its product better?
Well, one year of a ratings decline has moved the NFL to make changes. And yes, despite the claims - some valid, some excuses - that last season's NFL ratings dip was because of the social eye-ball magnet that is President Donald Trump, there was more to it than that.
First, there were a lot of bad prime time match-ups. Remember the Sunday afternoon declines were minuscule, and Fox's Game of the Week, which is blessed to have either the Cowboys or the Packers most weeks, actually saw ratings improvements. The prime-time games on Thursday, Sunday and Monday saw big declines, especially leading up the election in November. There was the growing frustration against the Colin Kaepernick protests. We know some people who quit watching the NFL as long as he was in the league and not standing for the anthem. There were other issues too.
A disconnect with some disgruntled fans for myriad reasons, the lament of too many commercials, to the uncontrollable issues of key injuries and a high number of bad teams meaning uncompetitive games.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell told USA Today that there are already moves in place to change some of the commercial patterns, including trying to eliminate the TD-commercial-PAT-commercial-Kickoff-commercial pattern that stunts almost any flow to the game, whether you are watching on TV or in the stands.
Goodell also said that the league and its broadcast partners are looking at ways to take fewer breaks and make them longer - four breaks for 2:20 rather than five or six at 1:50 - and that makes sense too.
The NFL is going to allow networks to take breaks during replays, which in some ways we think that could be turned into a forced break before the final two minutes of each half, as well as occasionally having in-game looks during commercial breaks.
Also of note in his discussion of rule changes and modifications is that the NFL - long dubbed the No Fun League because of its erratic and disingenuous celebration penalties - is looking at softening its celebration penalties and sending players a video of celebrations that are allowed and examples of that which is not.
(Side note: Not everyone was jazzed with the NFL sending out those videos. Here's outspoken Packers tight end Martellus Bennett on Twitter Wednesday night: "An educational training video on celebrations? Spend that money on something else like a video on investments or something that will help the players. Who gives a s--t what guys do when they celebrate. Do something impactful. Y'all wasting guys time with this s--t. Let the players express their individuality and creativity. Y'all gonna make an educational video on how we should talk next?")
Well, you're not going to please all of the people all of the time for sure. That said, and we have long been as critical of Goodell as anyone we regularly write about. This time, we'll say good for your Roger. Here's hoping Mr Funsy Kinsler is not on the committee exploring these options.
FILE - In this Sunday, March 19, 2017, file photo, Kansas guard Josh Jackson (11) celebrates a basket in the second half of a second-round game against Michigan State in the NCAA college basketball tournament in Tulsa, Okla. The drips and dribbles of unsavory news that have followed Kansas all season seems to have stopped, at least for the moment. But what hasn't stopped is the opinions that are getting thrown all over town about the Jayhawks, and more specifically, star freshman Josh Jackson. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki, File) Sweet 16
Here's who we like tonight.
We'll take Michigan over Oregon, because Michigan is playing with a special purpose right now. It's fun and scary and looks to be destiny. We'll take Kansas over Purdue, because the Jayhawks' guard play is great.
Come Saturday, we'll take Kansas over Michigan because of the defensive pressure the Jayhawks can extend. Michigan has been great at protecting the basketball, but they have not seen anything like what Kansas can do defensively.
We'll take West Virginia over Gonzaga tonight, because the full-court tenacity of Press Virginia is legit.
We'll take Arizona over Xavier, and considering I have Arizona winning the whole thing, well, you have a pretty idea who we have tonight and this weekend. As for Friday night, we have Florida over Wisconsin and Baylor over South Carolina with Florida winning to get to the Final Four.
We also have UNC and UCLA winning over Butler and Kentucky respectively with UCLA topping North Carolina to get to the Final Four. (We'll update the tiebreakers this afternoon for our First-Out, Last-In contest. Deal? Deal.)
This and that
- We love game shows. You should know this. (Not as much as the draft, but it's in the team picture.) The only thing better than the funny stories are the imagines of the unbelievably bone-headed mistakes. Here's the latest in which a "Wheel of Fortune" contestant who had this in front of him: "A STREETCAR NA-ED DESIRE" and spun the wheel and asked for a 'K.' Yep, he believed the puzzle to be A Streetcar Naked Desire. Oy.
- At some point, doesn't Lane Kiffin have to wonder, "Hey, it's been a few days since I've had to deal with a controversy, so something must be right around the corner." Well, now Kiffin and FAU are being sued for fraud by A.C. Carter, a former Alabama wide out who says he was promised a job by Kiffin.
- Have long been a fan of Jason Day's skills with a club in his hand. My heart goes out to he and his family after his announcement to withdraw from this week's WGC event to be with his mom, who has been given a year to live after being diagnosed with lung cancer.
- This should not be a big surprise and the entire story will be interesting to follow. Michael Porter Jr. is the top high school basketball player in the country. He has been committed to Washington for a while - even moving to Seattle for his senior year in high school - after his dad Michael Porter Sr. was put on the Huskies coaching staff and signed a letter of intent during the recruiting cycle. Well, head coach Lorenzo Romar and his staff was dismissed last week and Porter Jr. wants to be released from the letter of intent. Will be interesting to see. Also of note, new Missouri coach Cuonzo Martin reportedly has offered Porter Sr. a job on his staff with the Tigers.
- From the news that will make you shake your head, here is a story from Tupelo, Miss., in which a woman tried to smuggle meth to her boyfriend who was behind bars and waiting to be transferred to state prison. The vehicle she used to smuggle the drugs? The Bible. Oy.
- How good is Russell Westbrook right now? He had his 35th triple-double of the season - that's only six shy of Oscar Robertson's single-season record - and did it without missing a shot, going 6-for-6 from the floor and 6-of-6 from the line. Awesome.
- At the other end last night was a sneaky dreadful performance from LeBron James in a 126-113 loss to Denver. Yes, James had 18 points with six rebounds and five assists, which on its face is not a bad night, especially considering he was 8-of-12 from the field. But his four turnovers and listlessness led to a minus-30 score differential in his 34 minutes on the floor. It was the third worse plus/minus of his Hall of Fame career.
- Talk about not seeing the forest for the trees. Here's a dude in a throwback Nolan Ryan jersey sitting at a spring training game. Who's next to him? Nolan Ryan.
Today's question
If you want in the mailbag folks, I need it today.
On this day in 1985, Billy Joel married Christie Brinkley, in one of the biggest example of a guy out-kicking his coverage ever. (And example 12,327,189 of how hot chicks dig musicians.) Not to be outdone, Ric Ocasek was born on this day in 1949. Ocasek, the lead singer of The Cars, married Paulina Porizkova, in what is likely the greatest out-kicking moment ever.
On this day in 2015, Kris Jenner and Bruce Jenner got a divorce. Wonder what the issue was? Anyone have an idea, because in such a normal family, we thought those two had a real chance to make it, you know?
As for a question, what could your favorite sport do to improve the viewing experience?
Go and remember the mailbag.