Baseball's current and future
It's pretty common knowledge around these parts that I am a Dodgers fan.
But here's why rooting for the big-money monster that is L.A. is good for baseball.
The Dodgers still embrace the tried-and-traditional starting pitcher. You remember that guy right?
The guy that makes a big check, gets the ball once every five days and tried to get through five, six, seven innings or more before leaving the mound with a hat tip and a proud walk to the dugout where he is met with extended hands and well-wishes for a nice day at the office.
The starting pitcher is America, friends. And the Dodgers embrace him and his tradition.
The Brewers and their temp agency of a pitching staff - granted a couple of those dudes back there are temps with elite skills and Heder and Knebel throw absolute gas - are quick to go to their bullpen.
Wait, what's that you say? Despite their starter going only an inning because of injury, the Brewers used seven pitchers to the Dodgers nine? Hmmmmm.
Did we say Murica yet? Yeah. OK, well, nevermind then.
OK, here's the deal and its not changing no matter who you pull for: Today's baseball is going to the bullpen more than ever. It's the sneaky part of the growing length of baseball games.
Yes, baseball changed the rule and limited mound visits this year. Well, there was a historic gate in bullpens across baseball this year with more than 16,000 relief appearances for the first time ever. That's 6.72 relief appearances per game during the regular season.
And of course that trend in these LCSs is certainly growing. Here are the numbers of relief pitchers used by game so far as the leagues try to determine its World Series representative:
ALCS
Game 1 - 8 pitchers from the bullpen; Game 2 - 8 pitchers from the bullpen; Game 3 - 10 pitchers from the bullpen.
NLCS
Game 1 - 11 pitchers from the bullpen; Game 2 - 12 pitchers from the bullpen; Game 3 - 6 pitchers from the bullpen, including four Brewers in a 4-0 shutout; Game 4 - 14 pitchers from the bullpen.
Yes, Game 4 went 13 innings before Cody Bellinger's walk-off single gave the Dodgers a 2-1 win and tied the series at 2.
That's 69 relievers called from the 'pen in seven games. You do the math.
We are not for a limit of number of pitchers that can be used, but we would be willing to try some sort of hybrid rule of pitchers staying for a minimum number of batters.
And that said, unless the rosters expand - something the owners would fight for obvious reasons - this will add even more value to the guys like the true dual-threat guys like Shohei Ohtani in the future and even pitchers who are serviceable hitters like Madison Bumgarner and can be used as pinch hitters.
On a good side, as the MLB awards are being announced, maybe this strategic switch will finally open the eyes to the Cy Young voters that picking an individual award on an arbitrary stat like wins is supremely dated.
Scotch tape? Tape, then scotch
In the filth muck - you should see my shoes - that has been the federal court case in the college basketball deal, there were a couple of familiar names dropped Tuesday.
The defense attorney tried to introduce some taped conversations into evidence. (Yes, this whole ordeal is so far on upside down that the schools are the victims here and the money runners/agents/shoe folks are the defendants.) The court has routinely ruled that saying all of the NCAA is corrupt is not an adequate defense. (Not sure if the judge said, "If all your friends wanted to jump of the Brooklyn Bridge, would you want to do that too" but it seems like it would fit.)
So the tapes were not admitted but the contents of the tape as the defense read the transcript trying to get the tapes into evidence were loud and clear.
In the recruiting process of mega-five-star superstar-to-be Zion Williamson here is the conversation between Meryl Code, a defendant, and Kansas assistant Kurtis Townsend:
Code said: "I know what (Williamson's) asking for. This is the player's father. He's asking for opportunities from an occupational (perspective). He's asking for money in the pocket. And he's asking for housing for him and the family."
Townsend replied: "So, I've got to just try to work and figure out a way. Because if that's what it takes to get him for 10 months, we're going to have to do it some way."
Williamson is a transcendental athletic talent that has draw favorable comparisons to LeBron James. He's 6-foot-7, 280 pounds and dunks like this.
Everyone in the country wanted this dude. He signed with Duke. Hmmmmmmmmmm. (So you think the Williamson family only wanted money from Kansas but not anywhere else, huh? Exactly because we all know Duke wouldn't cheat,. For Pete Newell's sake Coach K has white players on his team, so you know they must do things the right way. And not to be lost in this age of dirty recruiting everywhere, Duke managed to get the top three players in the 2018 signing class. Duke just works harder than everyone else in recruiting, right? Right. Did we mention they have white guys on the team?)
Well, Williamson was the headliner, but he was not the only familiar name for a lot of us. Another attempt to get another taped conversation into evidence to help the case of cash-runner Christian Dawkins produced Dawkins conversation with a current college head coach about the recruiting of a 7-footer named Balsa Koprivica from Florida for the 2019 cycle.
That coach is former UTC boss and current LSU coach Will Wade, and here is what was read from the transcript:
"So you said to me in Atlanta there was a 2019 kid I wanted to recruit, they can get him to LSU, you would have funded," Dawkins told Wade, according to Dawkins' attorney. "Would you want Balsa?"
"Oh, the big kid?" Wade asked.
"Yeah," Dawkins confirmed.
"OK. But there's other (expletive) involved in it," Wade said. "I have got to shut my door ... Here's my thing: I can get you what you need, but it's got to work."
On June 21, 2017, Koprivica tweeted: "Blessed to say I have received an offer from LSU."
Oh boy.
And just because the NCAA is useless and neutered does not mean they are completely invisible. Here's what NCAA honcho Mark Emmert told USAToday this week:
"We're tracking it very closely and obviously very, very interested in it," Emmert said. "Doing everything to cooperate with the federal investigators so that we don't in any way hinder them and as the opportunity arises, as the trials move forward, we'll begin our work. But for now, we're watching and staying in close contact.
"We know fully what's going on in the courtroom at all times."
Guess will see if that knowledge becomes action soon enough, huh?
Our political Bunkers
So The Conners debuted Tuesday night.
Of course that's the spin-off of Roseanne, the show that starred Roseanne Barr as the title character. Roseanne was fired for some social media posts that were deemed offensive and racist by the ABC bigwigs.
The show killed of Roseanne with an opioid overdose, which is a very real problem in our country. And before we go any further, it was good to see the cast and crew not lose their gigs because of Barr's actions and the reactions of Barr's bosses.
But it's hard not to think that this was a real opportunity missed so that ABC (owned by Walt Disney) could feel good about themselves and say, "See we're not racist. We fired Roseanne."
(Side note: The scariest thing for anyone in the public eye is a tipsy Tweet or a Facebook foul-up. Seriously. ABC would have limped through three mediocre seasons of Roseanne after he fantastic numbers in last year's reboot. But make a mistake on social media and bye. And yes by all reports Roseanne was not exactly a day at the beach to work with, but sweet buckets, the folks that fit into that team picture in show business is going to be a bigger group of folks than those who say they have been cheering for Alabama since the Mike DuBose days.)
Man, as we become more and more divided and polarized, there was a real chance - and the void still exists - for a well-written TV show to show the struggles in America today as people wrestle with that divide and the frustrations those create.
And not just on that takes the, "Look at that racism isn't it awful" or "Man, bullying is bad OK." (And the fact that The Simpsons and South Park have gone from the most satirical shows on TV to potentially the most truthful shows on TV is a staggering sentence to even type.)
Think about it this way, right now if you are conservative you watch Fox News. If you are liberal you turn to CNN or MSNBC. Those broadcasts are preaching to their choirs and their converts. And those converts and choirs choose that and want that. That's commerce friends. It's not necessarily journalism but it makes sound financial sense.
Well, in scripted TV, those divides also are developing.
Take the sitcom Last Man Standing with Tim Allen. It was cancelled by ABC, and a lot of folks thought it was because Allen is a rare Hollywood conservative and the show was too right-wing. Fox picked up Last Man Standing after a lot of fan outcry.
Well, think of the possibilities on a modern-day Archie Bunker in a time far more divided and far more angry than when Carroll O'Connor was the satirical voice in a recliner. That self-examination and showing both sides of the political side of the coin would be a home run hit today that would draw viewers from each side looking for things to laugh at, mock, be outraged about and everything in between.
But along the way, could that satire not also potentially deliver some understanding of the other side? A perspective that we certainly not getting when we make our viewing and entertainment choices as homogeneous as our November ballots.
Yes, Roseanne tweeted some awful things, but they were just that Tweets. And in no way am I defending those actions or even Roseanne herself. I don't know her and in truth have not really liked her since she disrespected the National Anthem before a Padres game many years ago.
But think of the possible conversations - good, bad and otherwise - that could have been started or re-started with a lightning-rod character like Roseanne Conner.
Last year's reboot of the show was an overwhelming success because in a lot of ways it was the only show on TV that looked at a wide spectrum of our society's issues rather than the self-deprecating sit-com model of white people making fun of themselves and their situations.
Maybe next time.
This and that
- Want to know who is slap killing it this postseason? Meet on-base honoree Alex Bregman of Houston. He reached base 20 times in his first 27 playoff plate appearances. That's a cool .741 OBP. Egad.
- Wow we got a lot of baseball around these part today and here's more. MLB has acknowledge that the Astros have been participating in some chicanery and may have used video equipment to steal signs in real time in Game 1 of the ALCS. Let's see the outrage from Boston fans for a team trying to bend the rules to win a title. Oh wait. Seriously, don't we all believe that almost every team in the league is trying to steal whatever sign they can? Are we surprised with this in today's technological way? And speaking of technology, maybe the only thing that should surprise us is the arcane way baseball is communicating. Maybe they could upgrade to carrier pigeons and smoke signals. (Is that insensitive to Native Americans? Should I apologize to Elizabeth Warren? If so maybe only the Braves and Indians can use those then.) Seriously, how much time would is save if the pitcher had a mic in his hat and the catcher had a mic in his mask? Who knows but we bet those seconds every time a pitcher stares at the catcher's crotch - and nevermind his painted nails -add up to what, 20 minutes over the course of a game? Just a thought.
- Nick Bosa has hung 'em, up at THE Ohio State. He is working to get healthy for the draft. Smart move for a guy that may or may not have returned and if healthy will be a top-five NFL draft pick. And for THE fans of THE Ohio State bemoaning how he quit on his team. Just shut it. Seriously.
- Ol' Gus Malzahn was asked if he feels like he's coaching for his job. His answer - "I feel like I am coaching for my players" - was pretty awesome to be honest. That said, he's coaching for his job. But aren't they all?
- Thursday the new version of the Air Jordan (run 33 mind you) will hit stores. Man, there have been 33 Air Jordans? Crazy.
Today's questions
Which way Wednesday.
Which way will the NCAA go after this federal court case: Do nothing, do something minor, do something major (as in sanctions or declaring any player mentioned in this asking for money like superstar Zion Williamson ineligible)?
Which way do you lean Air Jordans or Chuck Taylors?
On this National Pasta Day, which is your go-to order at Italian restaurants?
October 17 is National Mulligan day, National Ass Day (seriously, as in donkey), National Take Your Parents to Lunch among others.
The first British Open was played on this day in 1860.
Eminem is 45 today. His real name is Marshall.
Rushmore of Marshalls. Go.