MLB Style
1) Can you remember a Reds team that is more frustrating?
Since getting a season high 15 games over .500 on June 19 (44-29), this team is
6-11. They are 19-22 over their last 41 games. That is ¼ of a season. Maybe
this team just is not as good as we thought they were. If not for some
outstanding pitching, they may be below .500 on the season. Last night was a typical
2013 Reds loss. A guy is thrown out at home. A guy is picked off first. A
pitcher goes 7 innings, gives us 3 hits and 2 runs….and gets a loss. The Reds
scored 0 runs. As Bruce Coslet once said: You can’t win if you can’t score…you
can tie; but you can’t win.
If this team fails to make the playoffs, how epic of a
failed season would it be? Sure, they are 4th in the NL in runs
scored, but that is EXTREMELY misleading with this team. They have 3 putrid
games followed by an outburst – thereby disguising their offensive ineptitude.
Here are the Reds run totals over the last 22 games (prior to today’s 6-2 win):
0, 5, 4, 0, 2, 3, 5, 3, 4, 3, 0, 0, 6, 2, 8, 3, 3, 2, 13, 1,
3, 0 = 70 runs (3.18 runs/game)
Take away the two blips on the radar (8 and 13) and you have
49 runs over 20 games (2.45 runs/game)!
During that 22 game stretch the Reds are 9-13 (5 of the 9
wins game against last place teams) - despite giving up 4 runs or less in 17 of
the 22 games - and have been shutout 5 times!
2) Homer Bailey throws a No-Hitter….
...then follows it up by
giving up 10 hits and 4 runs over 5.2 ip (including 3 hits and 2 runs in the 1st).
Congrats to Homer on his second no-hitter. Only the 31st player in a
145 year old sport to have multiple no-hitters. It is a remarkable feat and we
are starting to see flashes of what he could be…could be. What he is a pitcher
that is still incredibly inconsistent, incredibly frustrating, and incredibly
immature (see his snub of 700wlw interview, his shot at the announcers booth,
and his dropping an F-bomb in his on camera interview – the F-bomb was a slip
and to me, is no big deal; the other stuff is childish). Count me as those not
too enthusiastic about this no-hitter. Over his last 10 starts, here are
Homer’s ER’s: 4, 0, 4, 2, 6, 0, 3, 7, 2, 0 = 28. He is 3-4 in that stretch with
a respectable 3.78 ERA. But look at the inconsistency. 3 shutouts over 24
innings – Ace like. 28 ER over the other 21.1 – very un-Ace like. This
inconsistency is what drives fans crazy about Homer, and ultimately makes Homer
an unreliable pitcher.
3) Braun and Arod likely to be suspended for PEDs.
Good.
NBA Style
1) Dwight Howard Goes to the Rockets
I used to like Dwight Howard. That was when I saw him as a
fun loving star. I now realize he is simply a spoiled brat that has always
gotten whatever he wants without having to work for anything. When he faces
adversity, he runs. His word means nothing. He is more concerned with himself
and his “brand” than he is winning championships. He can’t take criticism. And,
regardless of what he says, he is the definition of a coach killer.
All that being said, I don’t blame him for leaving LA. In
fact, it was the right decision. First, it makes sense from a basketball
standpoint. Houston has a 23 year old star in James Harden at SF. A 24 year old
above average PG in Jeremy Lin. They are
coached by one of the best offensive big men of all-time in Kevin McHale. And
they have an ownership team committed to winning. The Lakers have a 40 year old
PG coming off an injury plagued season (Nash). Will likely to be without the 35
year old Kobe Bryant (for the year – or most of it) coming off an achilles
tear. They have a 33 year old Pau Gasol who doesn’t compliment Howard’s game. A
coach who does not run a system which Howard likes. And on top of that, they
are run by a spoiled buffoon with a poorly dyed mullet (Jim Buss –
see decision to hire Mike Brown; see decision to fire Brown; see decision to
not hire Phil Jackson; see decision to hire Dantoni; see decision to keep
Dantoni despite a failed season and Phil Jackson’s expressed interest in the
position). Second, he is a big enough star by himself that he doesn’t need LA
to be a star. Third, he does not have the personality to handle the criticism
and expectations that comes with being a Laker – Dwight thinks being good and
liked is good enough – the Lakers (organization, fans, and Kobe) don’t think
anything matters unless you win a championship – a language that is Greek to
Dwight. And lastly, he clearly had an issue gelling with Kobe and not being the
#1 guy.
We can rip him all we want. He has earned everything bad we
have to say about him. But, he made the best move going to Houston.
I don’t get this one for many reasons, but mostly because I
don’t see Stevens and the NBA (especially Boston) as a good fit (the city, the
expectations, the grind, the team, the rebuilding, Rondo, etc). Rondo had
issues with Doc Rivers, KG, Ray Allen, and Paul Pierce….I am sure a guy like
Brad Stevens with his baby face, privileged upbringing in Indianapolis (his
father was an orthopedic surgeon and his mom a university professor), and 0 years
of NBA experience (as player or coach) will be able to reign Rondo right in. My
prediction is that Stevens is fired before his 6 year deal is up and then he
goes back to the college game.
The ego of coaches (especially college coaches) is
mindboggling to me. I don’t understand the reluctance to “leave well enough
alone.” I thought Brad Stevens was different. I thought he embraced the game
itself rather than the ego and money. I thought he was the next coach to build
a dynasty type program. One where he stays at a program for 30-40 years and
retires with his name on the court. Most coaches of smaller schools jump ship at
every chance they get to move to larger schools with deeper pockets. Not
Stevens. When asked if he would ever leave Butler, Stevens said "First and foremost, I’m loyal to Butler…I
guess if they kicked me out." Stevens had
brushed aside offers to coach at Illinois, UCLA, and Maryland (to name a few).
Stevens grew up in Indy, rose to the ranks of head coach at nearby Butler. He
seemed to understand how well he had it and seemed to have a vision at Butler.
A vision which drove Butler from the Horizon League, to the A10, and ultimately
the Big East – all during his short coaching tenure.
“What Butler is, Butler is a great school. We're in a great
city. We have a niche from the standpoint of basketball with a good tradition
of basketball and a fieldhouse that really embraces the history of the game. So
we're very unique. I think being unique is a good thing, too. I think Butler,
certainly you always want to improve the facilities you have. We need to do
that. There's no question about that. But we also need to remember who we are.
I think that's why we're here, because we've got unselfish guys. They have a
great passion for history, tradition, team, things like that. So we've been
able to recruit to that.”
Coaches like Calipari, Pitino, Matta, etc., those guys crave
the money, the lights, the attention. Not Stevens. As you can see from his
quotes, he is loyal, he appreciate what he has, appreciates how well he has it,
and thrives on that. For once, a college coach whose words (and contract) meant
something….right up until they didn’t.
Oh yeah, the 33 year old Stevens had a contract with 10
years remaining on it….wonder if he has to sit out a year like the 18 year olds
who pull what Stevens just pulled.
The world may just be ending. A good coach demands respect
because of their poise, leadership qualities, and hard work. Nothing says respect,
leadership, poise, and hard work like a guy known more for hurting his team by
losing his poise at record pace than for his basketball skills. Wallace holds
the single season record for most “T’s” in a season – 41 (2000-01)…that is 1
every other game! In fact, he holds the top 4 spots and 7 of the top
20! I am sure he will have the respect of players and officials. Has Matt
Millen taken over as Pistons GM?
NFL Style
1) Robert Kraft says he was “duped” by Aaron Hernandez.
Really? If you were going to invest $40 million to anything over a 5 year time
period, wouldn’t you thoroughly research? One of the reasons Hernandez dropped
in the draft had to do with drug issues and concerns about gang affiliation.
Did he miss those reports? Did he miss the report about Hernandez’s possible
involvement in a shooting while a sophomore at Florida? Was he not aware of the
reported distance of Hernandez in his own lockerroom? I am not saying he should
have foreseen the guy may murder someone (or 3 someones), but to say you were “duped”
when you had to know about the other issues, that is playing the “woe is me
card,” and I ain’t buying it, nor am I feeling sorry for him.
2) Is Hernandez the dumbest murderer ever?
If reports are
true, yes. If what we hear is true, it sounds like Hernandez may have committed
murder on two occasions….and did so leaving behind keys to cars rented by
Hernandez (in his own name) in the pocket of the victims….which in turn leaves
a paper trail. I doubt this was a technique utilized by Whitey Bulger or other
MOB hit men.
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