Thursday, June 26, 2008
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Yay or Boo?
The Georgia Bulldogs play a deciding Game 3 of the College World Series tonight against Fresno State. The contest brings up an interesting question:As a Tennessee Vol, do I pull for or against the Dawgs?
On one hand, Georgia is an SEC school from the South whose championship brings extra bragging rights to the conference and area. Chances are I know something about the players on the team, be it their hometowns or high schools. I know UGA fans who would delight in the championship, so it makes sense to pull for happiness for my friends.
On the other hand, pulling for Georgia or any SEC rival goes against my Big Orange instincts. How can I pull against a team for 364 days of the year, then suddenly change my tune for one night? Being faithful to my wife for 364 days of the year does not do. It is a sin called adultery.
Not only am I committing an unnatural sin, I'm also subjecting myself to neighborly boasting. After the whipping the football and basketball Vols put on Georgia this year, the Dawgs are looking for a retort. An NCAA championship would be a nice comeback.
Another consideration is that this is baseball. Who cares about college baseball? I cannot name a single Tennessee Vol baseball player. I cannot name a single college baseball player. If Georgia wins the college baseball championship and no one cares, did they really win anything?
Hmm...
I'm going to watch the game tonight, but still haven't decided what I want to happen.
I do know this - I will be pulling for the Bulldogs.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Playing Hurt
Watching last night's Braves/Brewers game got me thinking about the most unspoken aspect about athletics - injuries.The Braves, picked by some to be World Series contenders, have been decimated by injuries this season. Smoltz, Hampton, Glavine, Soriano, Moylan, Chipper, Escobar, Kotsay, Diaz. The season has basically been ruined by tears, tweaks, strains, and pulls.
Meanwhile, the Brewers are playing great baseball behind ace pitcher Ben Sheets. Sheets is one of the game's greats, but injuries have plagued his entire career. Just yesterday I heard a baseball analyst mention the Brewers as Wild Card favorites, "as long as Ben Sheets stays healthy."
Success in sports is predicated on many factors. Strategy. Skill. Speed. We love to discuss these aspects of athletics. Games are won and lost because of these factors.
But what about injuries? Why don't we talk more about those?
For example, the most common cited reasons for the Lakers' loss in the NBA Finals were softness in the paint, the failure of the Triangle Offense against the Celtic defense, Phil Jackson's mishandling of the bench, and Lamar Odom no-showing the series.
But what about Andrew Bynum's absence? He would have solved the softness problem in the middle, taken the load off Lamar Odom, given the Lakers a post-up offense against the physical interior of Kendrick Perkins and P.J. Brown. He would have made a difference in the series.
To mention this, however, is to make an excuse. It is a legitimate one, but the reason both athletes and fans avoid mentioning injuries is because it sounds like whining. It is too easy as well. Who wants to read that the Braves' problems in one-run games is injuries in the bullpen? No, it must be young players, poor managing strategy and on-the-field breakdowns.
Injuries have derailed record-setting careers (Ken Griffey Jr.), Hall of Fame potential (Mark Prior and Kerry Wood) and team championships (Lakers). Yet, they are a largely unmentioned part of sports.
Monday, June 23, 2008
The Price You Pay
Friday's Chattanooga Times-Free Press featured an inspiring story about Ooltewah High School softball coach Norma Nelson's chaotic year.
Nelson's team captured the state softball championship in May - the highest of coaching highs. Earlier in the year, however, Nelson suffered the lowest of lows when a former student intentionally burned down her house with a firecracker. Nelson lost everything in the blaze, including her pet dog.
Nelson's story is an extreme example, but coaching in high school is not quite what it seems. From the outside looking in, coaching is a dream gig. You spend your days and nights on the playing field, breathing in fresh air, competing and strategizing, and devoting life to sport. Sure beats sitting in a cubicle.
It does, no doubt, It also, however, fails to live up to the outsider's view of it. Coaching is often a joyless task that involves breaking hearts, angering kids and parents and repeated failure. Look around major sports for a moment and list the coaches that seem truly happy. It is not easy.
Jeff Van Gundy is a glaring example of what coaching can do to you. Van Gundy emerged this NBA season as a hilarious color man with personality and terrific insights on ABC's broadcasts. As a coach, however, Van Gundy was a humorless worry-wort who looked to be on the brink of a nervous breakdown at any moment.
Coaching is often a joyless grind with lows, lows, an occasional high and then more lows. The occasional high keeps them coming back, like a strung out junkie coming back for one more dose of the addictive drug.
Why else would Coach Nelson continue at Ooltewah after her home was attacked by an angry student? Why wouldn't she take a desk job somewhere? Why wouldn't she find something with higher pay, fewer hours and no threat of arson?
There is a price you pay as a coach. It is the dirty looks from people you like, the accusations of dishonesty and deviance from jilted players and parents, the cold shoulders after losses and even sometimes after wins. In my coaching career, I have been accused by parents of favoritism, racism, stupidity and causing permanent psychological damage.
I have never had my home attacked. I have never worried about the safety of my wife, kids and pets. In my coaching days, I have never experienced anything this low.
I have also never won a state championship. The price you pay ought to earn you rewards and it does - friendships, satisfaction, excitement. For Norma Nelson, the reward this season was the pinnacle of her profession - a championship.
She certainly paid a heavy price for it.
Nelson's team captured the state softball championship in May - the highest of coaching highs. Earlier in the year, however, Nelson suffered the lowest of lows when a former student intentionally burned down her house with a firecracker. Nelson lost everything in the blaze, including her pet dog.
Nelson's story is an extreme example, but coaching in high school is not quite what it seems. From the outside looking in, coaching is a dream gig. You spend your days and nights on the playing field, breathing in fresh air, competing and strategizing, and devoting life to sport. Sure beats sitting in a cubicle.
It does, no doubt, It also, however, fails to live up to the outsider's view of it. Coaching is often a joyless task that involves breaking hearts, angering kids and parents and repeated failure. Look around major sports for a moment and list the coaches that seem truly happy. It is not easy.
Jeff Van Gundy is a glaring example of what coaching can do to you. Van Gundy emerged this NBA season as a hilarious color man with personality and terrific insights on ABC's broadcasts. As a coach, however, Van Gundy was a humorless worry-wort who looked to be on the brink of a nervous breakdown at any moment.
Coaching is often a joyless grind with lows, lows, an occasional high and then more lows. The occasional high keeps them coming back, like a strung out junkie coming back for one more dose of the addictive drug.
Why else would Coach Nelson continue at Ooltewah after her home was attacked by an angry student? Why wouldn't she take a desk job somewhere? Why wouldn't she find something with higher pay, fewer hours and no threat of arson?
There is a price you pay as a coach. It is the dirty looks from people you like, the accusations of dishonesty and deviance from jilted players and parents, the cold shoulders after losses and even sometimes after wins. In my coaching career, I have been accused by parents of favoritism, racism, stupidity and causing permanent psychological damage.
I have never had my home attacked. I have never worried about the safety of my wife, kids and pets. In my coaching days, I have never experienced anything this low.
I have also never won a state championship. The price you pay ought to earn you rewards and it does - friendships, satisfaction, excitement. For Norma Nelson, the reward this season was the pinnacle of her profession - a championship.
She certainly paid a heavy price for it.
Saturday, June 21, 2008
My Week On the Brink - Friday
My Week On the Brink concluded Friday afternoon with awards, goodbyes and exhaustion. After my two-hour trip home, I collapsed into a long nap that will throw off my sleep schedule for days. It is ironic that sitting around makes you the most tired, but that is what happened Friday.
Friday was Play Day. No learning stations, but lots of contests and games. We even allowed some full court scrimmages which the kids love and coaches hate (I'll get back to this in a moment). Because there is so much playing, the coaches spent much of the day keeping score and organizing rather than coaching. It also means we spend much of the day on our backsides rather than burning calories as drill instructors. It has taken 30 years to learn it, but nothing wears me out like doing nothing. My body does not like a day that does not include a little sweating and exercise. When I got home yesterday afternoon from my final day of camp, I was less celebratory and more sleepy.
Full court basketball is true basketball, but it quickly falls apart with 5th graders. They stop running up and down the floor, stop using any cuts or screens and stop passing the ball entirely. Rather than refereeing the contest like I was supposed to be, I spent most of the game yelling, "Move!" at stationary kids with frustrated faces about their lack of touches. Talk about driving me to the brink - the kid who refuses to budge to get open but then whines about not getting a pass drives this coach crazy.
The next step in this basketball regression is that since nobody is moving to get open, the kids start driving into multiple defenders to throw up terrible shots. This has several negative effects that demonstrate why coaches often prefer working in half court situations. The defense realizes that there is no passing, so they all chase the ball. Defensive principles - out the window. On top of that, since it is so rare to touch the ball in this setting, there emerges an "I'm going to get mine" mentality of taking a shot no matter how far away or defensively contested. You can see it on the face of the kid who has not had the ball in a while and suddenly comes upon it. The face says, "I don't care if all of you a**holes are wide open, I'm taking this shot and there is nothing you can do about it." Finally, with kids forcing drives into traffic, the games quickly becomes a whine-a-thon of, "That's a foul!" No referee, let alone coach pretending to be one, is going to call a foul when a player drives into four defenders, but that is tough to explain to an angry eleven-year old.
Much of the day was spent figuring out the Campers of the Week. Yes, more prizes. COTW is awarded to one kid in each group who "embraces the camp." It is kind of like porn - you know it when you see it. For my group, one kid was clearly the most competitive, encouraging and ready to try new things. There was one group with several worthy candidates and another without a real strong one. Of course, they all think they might win it. They cling to that one time they yelled, "You can do it, Ben" and forget about the time they refused to shake someone's hand after a game or threw food across the table at lunch. I caught one kid's eyes welling up after he did not get my award. The kid was probably my second choice, but he got upset with a teammate and refused to play in our cutthroat game for several minutes. At that point, minus the rest of the group openly rioting or denying the Holocaust, he was not going to win Camper of the Week.
One of Coach Stroupe's best touches is not getting trophies or plaques for the winners. Instead, the winners get basketballs and dribble glasses (you can see forward, but not down so as not to look at the ball while you dribble). The last thing these kids need is a meaningless trophy, but it is amazing how many of them cherish that basketball.
As much as I vent and complain about aspects of the camp, it usually succeeds in renewing my basketball batteries. I'm already thinking ahead to the up-coming season and what I want to focus upon after seeing new things from other coaches this week. The money, for me anyway, was minimal after filling up the Civic tank twice to get from Chattanooga to Knoxville, but much of the week is invaluable. Being around good kids. Being around good coaches. Being around the best sport known to man.
It almost sounds like I want to do it again, which explains, I guess, why I keep coming back to basketball camp year after year.
Friday was Play Day. No learning stations, but lots of contests and games. We even allowed some full court scrimmages which the kids love and coaches hate (I'll get back to this in a moment). Because there is so much playing, the coaches spent much of the day keeping score and organizing rather than coaching. It also means we spend much of the day on our backsides rather than burning calories as drill instructors. It has taken 30 years to learn it, but nothing wears me out like doing nothing. My body does not like a day that does not include a little sweating and exercise. When I got home yesterday afternoon from my final day of camp, I was less celebratory and more sleepy.
Full court basketball is true basketball, but it quickly falls apart with 5th graders. They stop running up and down the floor, stop using any cuts or screens and stop passing the ball entirely. Rather than refereeing the contest like I was supposed to be, I spent most of the game yelling, "Move!" at stationary kids with frustrated faces about their lack of touches. Talk about driving me to the brink - the kid who refuses to budge to get open but then whines about not getting a pass drives this coach crazy.
The next step in this basketball regression is that since nobody is moving to get open, the kids start driving into multiple defenders to throw up terrible shots. This has several negative effects that demonstrate why coaches often prefer working in half court situations. The defense realizes that there is no passing, so they all chase the ball. Defensive principles - out the window. On top of that, since it is so rare to touch the ball in this setting, there emerges an "I'm going to get mine" mentality of taking a shot no matter how far away or defensively contested. You can see it on the face of the kid who has not had the ball in a while and suddenly comes upon it. The face says, "I don't care if all of you a**holes are wide open, I'm taking this shot and there is nothing you can do about it." Finally, with kids forcing drives into traffic, the games quickly becomes a whine-a-thon of, "That's a foul!" No referee, let alone coach pretending to be one, is going to call a foul when a player drives into four defenders, but that is tough to explain to an angry eleven-year old.
Much of the day was spent figuring out the Campers of the Week. Yes, more prizes. COTW is awarded to one kid in each group who "embraces the camp." It is kind of like porn - you know it when you see it. For my group, one kid was clearly the most competitive, encouraging and ready to try new things. There was one group with several worthy candidates and another without a real strong one. Of course, they all think they might win it. They cling to that one time they yelled, "You can do it, Ben" and forget about the time they refused to shake someone's hand after a game or threw food across the table at lunch. I caught one kid's eyes welling up after he did not get my award. The kid was probably my second choice, but he got upset with a teammate and refused to play in our cutthroat game for several minutes. At that point, minus the rest of the group openly rioting or denying the Holocaust, he was not going to win Camper of the Week.
One of Coach Stroupe's best touches is not getting trophies or plaques for the winners. Instead, the winners get basketballs and dribble glasses (you can see forward, but not down so as not to look at the ball while you dribble). The last thing these kids need is a meaningless trophy, but it is amazing how many of them cherish that basketball.
As much as I vent and complain about aspects of the camp, it usually succeeds in renewing my basketball batteries. I'm already thinking ahead to the up-coming season and what I want to focus upon after seeing new things from other coaches this week. The money, for me anyway, was minimal after filling up the Civic tank twice to get from Chattanooga to Knoxville, but much of the week is invaluable. Being around good kids. Being around good coaches. Being around the best sport known to man.
It almost sounds like I want to do it again, which explains, I guess, why I keep coming back to basketball camp year after year.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
My Week On the Brink - Thursday
My Week on the Brink is winding down. Today at lunch, Coach Stroupe looked at all the coaches and said, "It's Thursday." We are all tired - tired of learning stations, tired of certain kids who continue to get on our nerves and just plain tired. Without meaning to sound too dramatic, being on your feet all day in charge of 60 campers does wear you out. I know that in the big scheme of things it is hardly manual labor, but we are all tired at this point.
The coaches this week are a solid group. It makes the whole week so much easier when the coaches are in complete control and keeping good order. Coach Stroupe runs camp like clockwork. Every minute is thought out and designed for the good of the camper. I cannot say the same for every basketball camp I have worked. Coach Mitchell is the former boys varsity coach and current girls middle school coach. He has been at Webb forever and knows his stuff. Coach K is the new boys varsity head coach. He is my age, played at Davidson and coached some in Sweden. I think we would be buddies if I lived in Knoxville and he did not work for a school that my school plays. There have already been a couple of conversations when we both stepped back before revealing too much about our program's respective philosophies. Brother Jim is the oddball coach of the camp. I have no idea what his credentials are, but his bald head and awful fashion sense provide some levity to the staff. Finally, we have a kid named Cameron Sharp who plays for Carson-Newman. He came to camp back when I first started working it and turned into a fantastic player. He is not tall, not too quick and not intimidating, but he was All-State at Halls in Knoxville and is a testament to where hard work will get you. All in all, I don't think there is a camp in East Tennessee that offers a better staff of coaches. That is why the camp is always full.
Today was "Favorite Team Shirt" day and, as you can guess since we're in Knoxville, the Vols were the most popular choice. I was pleasantly surprised to see several Chris Lofton jerseys on the campers. I don't wear jerseys because I'm a grown man, but if I did it would be a Chris Lofton one. There were also two Kevin Garnett Celtic jerseys on display which both looked to be fresh off the hanger. Something tells me those kids told Mom to drive them to Foot Locker to get a shirt for today's camp.
The highlight of the morning was a time-killing demonstration of a silly middle school game. We were waiting for some late arrivals, so Coach Stroupe showed them how to play some game called "Wah." I did not understand the rules at all, so don't ask. One of the kids demonstrating the game was least favorite camper. He routinely disrupts the drills at my learning station by walking right through the middle of them or by not realizing it is his turn. He is not a basketball player in any regard. He is, however, quite a "Wah" player. He was so over-the-top into this game that even some of the kids were laughing in an entertained-more-than-making-fun type of way. It might have been my favorite moment of the entire camp.
The big event of Thursday is the one-on-one tournament. There can be only one winner for each group, so that leaves 54 broken hearts. They all harbor hopes of winning it, not bothering to let reason or logic cast doubts on that happening. The worst player in my group was in tears after being eliminated from the loser's bracket. I guess that is admirable, but did he really think he might win it? What exactly were his expectations in this tournament?
Looking back, I think I was the same way as a kid. I can remember losing my mind about losing games in camp or with friends, but now I think about who I lost to and wonder what I was so upset about. One year at Ooltewah Camp, I lost to a freakish kid named Jason Green who was like 6'2 in the 5th grade (he never grew again). I was so upset about it. He drilled me like 16-0 and I took it hard. He was a full foot taller than me with a pretty decent mustache. Why did I have any hopes of winning? There is something charming about kids who are still naive enough to not recognize their shortcomings. There is plenty of time for that later in life.
The day ended with way too much 5 on 5 time before candy bars. The longer the scrimmages go, the more the kids push the foul limit. As informal referees, we only blow our whistles when someone is bloody or unconscious. If the games go on too long, the kids figure this out and just kill each other. I had to stop my game once today to address the fouling, but it only stopped because scrimmage time was over. At this age, they are completely Machiavellian in their playing - the ends justify the means. If fouling and pushing equals victory, foul and push. As Bobby "The Brain" used to say, it is only cheating if you get caught.
Friday is just hours away, so I'm off to bed to dream of all the things I'm going to buy with tomorrow's paycheck. Friday is usually a great day because the kids are all in suck-up mode to try to capture "Camper of the Week." Don't tell anyone, but my group winner is so obvious that I could have given it on Wednesday. My big job for tomorrow is to figure out his name.
The coaches this week are a solid group. It makes the whole week so much easier when the coaches are in complete control and keeping good order. Coach Stroupe runs camp like clockwork. Every minute is thought out and designed for the good of the camper. I cannot say the same for every basketball camp I have worked. Coach Mitchell is the former boys varsity coach and current girls middle school coach. He has been at Webb forever and knows his stuff. Coach K is the new boys varsity head coach. He is my age, played at Davidson and coached some in Sweden. I think we would be buddies if I lived in Knoxville and he did not work for a school that my school plays. There have already been a couple of conversations when we both stepped back before revealing too much about our program's respective philosophies. Brother Jim is the oddball coach of the camp. I have no idea what his credentials are, but his bald head and awful fashion sense provide some levity to the staff. Finally, we have a kid named Cameron Sharp who plays for Carson-Newman. He came to camp back when I first started working it and turned into a fantastic player. He is not tall, not too quick and not intimidating, but he was All-State at Halls in Knoxville and is a testament to where hard work will get you. All in all, I don't think there is a camp in East Tennessee that offers a better staff of coaches. That is why the camp is always full.
Today was "Favorite Team Shirt" day and, as you can guess since we're in Knoxville, the Vols were the most popular choice. I was pleasantly surprised to see several Chris Lofton jerseys on the campers. I don't wear jerseys because I'm a grown man, but if I did it would be a Chris Lofton one. There were also two Kevin Garnett Celtic jerseys on display which both looked to be fresh off the hanger. Something tells me those kids told Mom to drive them to Foot Locker to get a shirt for today's camp.
The highlight of the morning was a time-killing demonstration of a silly middle school game. We were waiting for some late arrivals, so Coach Stroupe showed them how to play some game called "Wah." I did not understand the rules at all, so don't ask. One of the kids demonstrating the game was least favorite camper. He routinely disrupts the drills at my learning station by walking right through the middle of them or by not realizing it is his turn. He is not a basketball player in any regard. He is, however, quite a "Wah" player. He was so over-the-top into this game that even some of the kids were laughing in an entertained-more-than-making-fun type of way. It might have been my favorite moment of the entire camp.
The big event of Thursday is the one-on-one tournament. There can be only one winner for each group, so that leaves 54 broken hearts. They all harbor hopes of winning it, not bothering to let reason or logic cast doubts on that happening. The worst player in my group was in tears after being eliminated from the loser's bracket. I guess that is admirable, but did he really think he might win it? What exactly were his expectations in this tournament?
Looking back, I think I was the same way as a kid. I can remember losing my mind about losing games in camp or with friends, but now I think about who I lost to and wonder what I was so upset about. One year at Ooltewah Camp, I lost to a freakish kid named Jason Green who was like 6'2 in the 5th grade (he never grew again). I was so upset about it. He drilled me like 16-0 and I took it hard. He was a full foot taller than me with a pretty decent mustache. Why did I have any hopes of winning? There is something charming about kids who are still naive enough to not recognize their shortcomings. There is plenty of time for that later in life.
The day ended with way too much 5 on 5 time before candy bars. The longer the scrimmages go, the more the kids push the foul limit. As informal referees, we only blow our whistles when someone is bloody or unconscious. If the games go on too long, the kids figure this out and just kill each other. I had to stop my game once today to address the fouling, but it only stopped because scrimmage time was over. At this age, they are completely Machiavellian in their playing - the ends justify the means. If fouling and pushing equals victory, foul and push. As Bobby "The Brain" used to say, it is only cheating if you get caught.
Friday is just hours away, so I'm off to bed to dream of all the things I'm going to buy with tomorrow's paycheck. Friday is usually a great day because the kids are all in suck-up mode to try to capture "Camper of the Week." Don't tell anyone, but my group winner is so obvious that I could have given it on Wednesday. My big job for tomorrow is to figure out his name.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
My Week On the Brink - Wednesday
I predicted meltdowns yesterday and was proven prophetic today. There was tears, much whining and quite a bit of general unhappiness on Day #3 of camp.
How did I know it would happen? Here is how camp generally runs in the mind of a 6th grade camper: Day #1 is full of promise as the week will surely prove Mom right that I am really good at basketball; Day #2 still has promise because most of Day #1 was spent sitting around instead of showcasing my skills; Day #3 is the first realization that Mom is full of crap because I'm not any good at basketball; Day #4 is coming to terms with my lack of athletic skills, my lying Mother, and instead focusing on goofing off and having fun; Day #5 is desperation in the hopes of winning some kind of contest to salvage what little pride is still left after a week of camp and salvage my relationship with Mom.
So today was My Mom is Full of Crap Day. There were many contests and lots of playing. Sounds like fun, unless you are losing. The losers took it tough today. One kid in my group went down like Michael Spinks after catching an elbow to the cheek. The wounded camper was mostly upset about not getting the ball (it would help if he occasionally moved on offense), but the cheek assault was a good excuse to let out a week of bottled-up frustration.
The biggest challenge at summer camp is trying to keep enough order for the kids who want to improve while also giving room for the kids who just want to have fun. After all, this is not prison detail or anything. I cannot ask a kid to run laps or get up in his face for goofing off in a drill. That kid won't come back, will get his refund and I'll be out my share of his fee. At the same time, there are kids who get frustrated by the idiocy of groupmates who ruin everything with their silliness. It is a fine line to walk as camp coach.
My usual solution is to ignore the idiocy as much as possible and give lots of feedback to the kids who are really trying. I also try to keep everything moving so fast that there is little time for silliness. For example, my station is using two lines to do perimeter moves. One line simply passes the ball and then rebounds it. There is no point to this line at all, but it does give a job to someone who would otherwise be standing deep in a line. That kid would be likely to goof off if he/she was not about to take a turn as passer. I wish I could say it prevents all silliness, but it seems to at least limit it a bit.
I wish I had a solution for the whining, but I don't have a fix for that one yet.
"Can we do something else?"
"Can I be on Timmy's team?"
"What about my 1st amendment rights?"
Today I made the colossal mistake of suggesting shirts and skins after we forgot to grab jerseys for our scrimmage games. These self-conscious 5th graders were ready to riot if I made them disrobe to play basketball. Since when did 5th graders get self-conscious? One particular kid was glaring at me like he was Robespierre and I was Louis XVI. Obviously, I saved my head and sent someone to find the jerseys. From that point forward, the whining was incessant throughout the entire game. Fouls, passes, travels - you name it, they whined about it.
I know this all makes basketball camp sound like some cross between Lord of the Flies and that whitewater rafting movie with Kevin Bacon. Not the one with Meryl Streep; the other one where Bacon fell into a hole and had to be rescued by the very kids he had been picking on for the last hour.
Anyway, the reason it sounds like that is because it is. If parents could see the humiliation, discouragement and embarrassment their $150 is buying, they would sue us child abuse. So how come we have 60 campers showing up each day?
Two words: candy bars.
These kids put up with all the shame of basketball camp in the hopes of winning a Kit Kat bar. Win one - the day was a success. Come up short - take your Zoloff. The genius of this particular camp are the rules that a) you can only win one candy bar a day and b) you can only win a candy bar at a particular contest once per week. That pretty much guarantees everyone at least one candy bar during the course of the week. We have an Indian kid (Asian, not Native) this week who might be the most clueless camper I have ever encountered. He is going into the 4th grade, but looks just a little taller than Abby. Every once in a while, one of his shots gets high enough to hit the rim. Not go in, mind you. No, just hit the rim. Even he will win a candy bar this week. We'll rig a game of dribble tag for him or give him "Best Stretcher of the Day."
Each camp day ends with coaches' comments and candy bars. The kids sit down all fired up from the scrimmage's injustices, but walk away 10 minutes later with smiles and Reese's Cups.
Pretty simple concept - if the campers are unhappy, let them eat candy.
How did I know it would happen? Here is how camp generally runs in the mind of a 6th grade camper: Day #1 is full of promise as the week will surely prove Mom right that I am really good at basketball; Day #2 still has promise because most of Day #1 was spent sitting around instead of showcasing my skills; Day #3 is the first realization that Mom is full of crap because I'm not any good at basketball; Day #4 is coming to terms with my lack of athletic skills, my lying Mother, and instead focusing on goofing off and having fun; Day #5 is desperation in the hopes of winning some kind of contest to salvage what little pride is still left after a week of camp and salvage my relationship with Mom.
So today was My Mom is Full of Crap Day. There were many contests and lots of playing. Sounds like fun, unless you are losing. The losers took it tough today. One kid in my group went down like Michael Spinks after catching an elbow to the cheek. The wounded camper was mostly upset about not getting the ball (it would help if he occasionally moved on offense), but the cheek assault was a good excuse to let out a week of bottled-up frustration.
The biggest challenge at summer camp is trying to keep enough order for the kids who want to improve while also giving room for the kids who just want to have fun. After all, this is not prison detail or anything. I cannot ask a kid to run laps or get up in his face for goofing off in a drill. That kid won't come back, will get his refund and I'll be out my share of his fee. At the same time, there are kids who get frustrated by the idiocy of groupmates who ruin everything with their silliness. It is a fine line to walk as camp coach.
My usual solution is to ignore the idiocy as much as possible and give lots of feedback to the kids who are really trying. I also try to keep everything moving so fast that there is little time for silliness. For example, my station is using two lines to do perimeter moves. One line simply passes the ball and then rebounds it. There is no point to this line at all, but it does give a job to someone who would otherwise be standing deep in a line. That kid would be likely to goof off if he/she was not about to take a turn as passer. I wish I could say it prevents all silliness, but it seems to at least limit it a bit.
I wish I had a solution for the whining, but I don't have a fix for that one yet.
"Can we do something else?"
"Can I be on Timmy's team?"
"What about my 1st amendment rights?"
Today I made the colossal mistake of suggesting shirts and skins after we forgot to grab jerseys for our scrimmage games. These self-conscious 5th graders were ready to riot if I made them disrobe to play basketball. Since when did 5th graders get self-conscious? One particular kid was glaring at me like he was Robespierre and I was Louis XVI. Obviously, I saved my head and sent someone to find the jerseys. From that point forward, the whining was incessant throughout the entire game. Fouls, passes, travels - you name it, they whined about it.
I know this all makes basketball camp sound like some cross between Lord of the Flies and that whitewater rafting movie with Kevin Bacon. Not the one with Meryl Streep; the other one where Bacon fell into a hole and had to be rescued by the very kids he had been picking on for the last hour.
Anyway, the reason it sounds like that is because it is. If parents could see the humiliation, discouragement and embarrassment their $150 is buying, they would sue us child abuse. So how come we have 60 campers showing up each day?
Two words: candy bars.
These kids put up with all the shame of basketball camp in the hopes of winning a Kit Kat bar. Win one - the day was a success. Come up short - take your Zoloff. The genius of this particular camp are the rules that a) you can only win one candy bar a day and b) you can only win a candy bar at a particular contest once per week. That pretty much guarantees everyone at least one candy bar during the course of the week. We have an Indian kid (Asian, not Native) this week who might be the most clueless camper I have ever encountered. He is going into the 4th grade, but looks just a little taller than Abby. Every once in a while, one of his shots gets high enough to hit the rim. Not go in, mind you. No, just hit the rim. Even he will win a candy bar this week. We'll rig a game of dribble tag for him or give him "Best Stretcher of the Day."
Each camp day ends with coaches' comments and candy bars. The kids sit down all fired up from the scrimmage's injustices, but walk away 10 minutes later with smiles and Reese's Cups.
Pretty simple concept - if the campers are unhappy, let them eat candy.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
My Week On the Brink - Tuesday
The monotony of basketball camp has set in...and it is only Tuesday.
After another two hours of Scott McClellan, whose voice is not the best caffeine in the morning, I rolled into camp for another day of basketball. Tuesday always moves along more quickly which is both good and bad. The good is that the day goes by faster as it is jam-packed with activities. The bad is that there is less time to relax and enjoy the other coaches because every minute demands a camper's attention.
One of my duties is to stretch the campers. I earned this privilege during my first year as camp coach back in the 1990s and have done it every camp since. My trick? Fun counting. We count up to 12, down from 12, by two's, in Spanish, increasing volume, etc. The little kids love it; the other kids put up with it. I stole the idea from another camp I worked in high school, but nobody knows that in Knoxville.
Speaking of getting credit for things not mine, we did a drill today called the "Carpenter Drill." I'm serious. There are not too many drills named after people - Mikan Drill, Dantley Drill and Carpenter Drill. It is not mine either - I got it out of a Five Star Basketball book - but Coach Stroupe loved it and named it after me. The drill is simple - lay-up, run to free throw line, lay-up, run to free throw line, etc. I call it the Hustle Drill; at camp we call it the Carpenter Drill.
Today's learning station was using a change of pace to beat the defender. I even delved into my bag of basketball tricks to show them some subtle ways to trick their defender. Kids are funny - they cannot do the simple things you ask of them, but insist on trying difficult things that really good high school players cannot do. I asked them to dribble toward the defender (a trash can) slowly, then burst past (change of pace). A few of them decided that was beneath them and tried behind-the-back or spin moves instead. I asked one kid what he was doing and he replied, "I'm trying to challenge myself." The kid cannot hit the rim on a lay-up, but he wants to challenge himself with a behind-the-back move. Classic.
The coaches spent lunch debating Terrance Oglesby's shot selection for Clemson. If I could shoot like that kid, I wouldn't pass either. That was my two cents.
The afternoon was all about playing. 3 on 3, 4 on 4 no dribble and 4 on 4 live. Tempers flare and fundamentals are forgotten once we start playing real games. I had to stop the action a few times to settle disputes (usually between teammates) and correct bad play. The main goal with my group (the D group - you can guess how good they are) is to get them to move without the basketball. I yell "cut" over and over throughout the action at kids who are standing in one spot asking for the ball. Hopefully by Friday they figure it out.
Today's camp comments came from Sun Tzu (told you) about deceiving an opponent in war. They were a bit rushed today because we were running late and, frankly, they were not by best. The varsity head coach did a better job than me, though he piggy-backed off my previous days remarks. Plagiarism.
Tomorrow is Hump Day. Someone will melt down tomorrow - guaranteed.
After another two hours of Scott McClellan, whose voice is not the best caffeine in the morning, I rolled into camp for another day of basketball. Tuesday always moves along more quickly which is both good and bad. The good is that the day goes by faster as it is jam-packed with activities. The bad is that there is less time to relax and enjoy the other coaches because every minute demands a camper's attention.
One of my duties is to stretch the campers. I earned this privilege during my first year as camp coach back in the 1990s and have done it every camp since. My trick? Fun counting. We count up to 12, down from 12, by two's, in Spanish, increasing volume, etc. The little kids love it; the other kids put up with it. I stole the idea from another camp I worked in high school, but nobody knows that in Knoxville.
Speaking of getting credit for things not mine, we did a drill today called the "Carpenter Drill." I'm serious. There are not too many drills named after people - Mikan Drill, Dantley Drill and Carpenter Drill. It is not mine either - I got it out of a Five Star Basketball book - but Coach Stroupe loved it and named it after me. The drill is simple - lay-up, run to free throw line, lay-up, run to free throw line, etc. I call it the Hustle Drill; at camp we call it the Carpenter Drill.
Today's learning station was using a change of pace to beat the defender. I even delved into my bag of basketball tricks to show them some subtle ways to trick their defender. Kids are funny - they cannot do the simple things you ask of them, but insist on trying difficult things that really good high school players cannot do. I asked them to dribble toward the defender (a trash can) slowly, then burst past (change of pace). A few of them decided that was beneath them and tried behind-the-back or spin moves instead. I asked one kid what he was doing and he replied, "I'm trying to challenge myself." The kid cannot hit the rim on a lay-up, but he wants to challenge himself with a behind-the-back move. Classic.
The coaches spent lunch debating Terrance Oglesby's shot selection for Clemson. If I could shoot like that kid, I wouldn't pass either. That was my two cents.
The afternoon was all about playing. 3 on 3, 4 on 4 no dribble and 4 on 4 live. Tempers flare and fundamentals are forgotten once we start playing real games. I had to stop the action a few times to settle disputes (usually between teammates) and correct bad play. The main goal with my group (the D group - you can guess how good they are) is to get them to move without the basketball. I yell "cut" over and over throughout the action at kids who are standing in one spot asking for the ball. Hopefully by Friday they figure it out.
Today's camp comments came from Sun Tzu (told you) about deceiving an opponent in war. They were a bit rushed today because we were running late and, frankly, they were not by best. The varsity head coach did a better job than me, though he piggy-backed off my previous days remarks. Plagiarism.
Tomorrow is Hump Day. Someone will melt down tomorrow - guaranteed.
Monday, June 16, 2008
My Week On the Brink - Monday
This week I'm driving to Knoxville every day for the one week of the summer I dread - basketball camp week. Basketball camp is a necessary evil for basketball coaches across the country. The reason is simple - easy money. There are lines of kids who want to spend a week of their summer playing hoops and a line of parents ready to cipher their kids off to anyone else. They pay big bucks for the week in a deal that works out well for them (cheap baby-sitting) and us (summer stipend).
What is there to dread? Basketball camps tend to be pretty dull affairs. Most camps are for players in their middle school years who lack the basic fundamentals. While it is vital to teach these basics, it is also boring. I have taught the same footwork station at this particular camp at least a dozen times, five or six times a day. It is like Groundhog's Day (which happens to be my friend Glenn's favorite movie...weird) without the Sonny and Cher.
Rather than endure the week alone, I'm going to take you, the reader, deep inside the workings of a rising 4th-6th grade basketball camp. In the spirit of John Feinstein's classic A Season on the Brink about a season of Indiana Hoosier basketball, I bring you My Week On the Brink at basketball camp.
After an easy hour & forty-five minute drive to the sweet sounds of Scott McClellan's audio book, I arrived for Monday's camp session. The first day of basketball camp is the easiest day unless you are in charge. I'm not in charge this week - that responsibility belongs to my coaching mentor Elliott Stroupe. In many ways, he is the Bobby Knight of our Week on the Brink. He is a veteran coach in Knoxville, a stubborn, set-in-his-ways, my-way-or-highway kind of coach that doesn't put up with much from administrators, fellow coaches, referees or parents. He would have been run out of town long ago except for two things - he can really coach and he is great with kids. Coach Stroupe's Monday is a hectic one of organization, tweaking and decisions. He spent most of today's lunch walking around the cafeteria making sure nobody was eating alone while the rest of us coaches enjoyed our stale tacos and soggy corn.
Back to my easy day, the rest of the coaching staff spends most of Monday waiting around for the organizer to make decisions. Who belongs in which group? How much time will we need now that we are behind schedule? Where are the t-shirts? Who is this kid that just showed up at 11:30 in a "Computer Camp" shirt? These types of decisions belong to one man and it isn't me. He is the Decider. I am the Follower. It pays less to be the Follower, but it is a much easier gig.
The morning began with about 30 minutes of "knockout" (a classic basketball camp game that every kid knows, expects and loves) while we waiting for stragglers and late registries. We finally get together around 9:15 to go over introductions and camp basics. Having worked so many of these camps, I can finish just about every sentence out of Coach Stroupe's mouth. Every year, for some reason only he knows, he explains how the gym is air-conditioned using a "geo-thermal tap." Every year. Why? Beats me.
From introductions we enter into the evaluation stage of camp. This is where things get good. We try to group kids by ability so there is an A group (best players) through F group (young kids with no clue). Dreams are shattered by 10:00 a.m. at basketball camp when kids realize that they are not making the A group...or the B group...or the C group. Parents who paid $150 for their kid to have improved self-esteem got ripped off.
Picking groups takes forever. There are lots of little considerations we try to take into account, like not having one girl in a group or one 5th grader, but there is no making everyone happy. Coach Stroupe will have emails and phone messages tonight about how Jimmy wants to be in Tony's group. Again, there are advantages to working camp rather than running camp.
Finally, groups are picked and camp can really begin. The heart of any good basketball camp is the learning stations. The campers come to play games and make friends, but the value is in the stations. As a coach, this is easily the most fun part of the day as I get to impart my knowledge to eager learners.
Okay, there are only about 5 eager learners. There are about 45 campers who tolerate the stations to get to the games and contests. The other 10 campers goof off through the stations and can ruin them.
My station this week is Perimeter Moves to the Basket. The kids all picture a bunch of And1 moves like they seem from The Professor and Skip To My Lou, but their inability to dribble twice without looking down at the ball limits our ability to do freestyle moves. Instead, we worked today on getting low to breeze past defenders. I mentioned Paul Pierce's ability to drive past Laker defenders because he gets low. They stared at me with blank looks. So much for my "Be Like Paul Pierce" theme for the week.
After stations, it is time for lunch. I am a sucker for free food and always put too much food on my plate. Don't worry - it all gets eaten, but I am useless for the rest of the day. The coaches spend lunch venting about which kids are already driving them crazy, but also which ones have promise or are just nice kids. We laughed today about "PIFers" who are killing our drills; PIFers are Paid In Full kids who are terrible, but, well, paid in full.
Post-lunch starts with a lesson from Coach Stroupe about how to shoot an off-handed lay-up. This is Coach at his best - teaching impressionable youngsters the basic skills of the game. Unlike some coaches who can breakdown every offense or defense known to man, but cannot teach the fundamentals in an understandable way, Coach has the volunteer shooter slowly taking baby steps on his way to properly shooting a proper lay-up. Within 5 minutes, the kid is jumping off the proper foot and using his left-hand to throw the ball off the glass. Coach Stroupe is not a miracle worker (he ain't no miracle man) so the kid is not making the left-handed lay-ups yet, but he is well on his way.
We break back into groups to work on these lay-ups for a while before finally playing some actual games. You might think this would be the best part of the day for coaches - wrong. The good side of the games is that we mostly just sit back and call an occasional foul, so it is pretty relaxing. Why aren't we giving instructions on proper plays and such? At 1:00, the campers just want to play and not listen to us anymore. Today I stopped the action to explain how a simple screen away from the ball would get someone open and start an offense, but it was only used once by a kid who in all likelihood just ran into someone on accident.
The games are usually 3 on 3 or 4 on 4 in the half court. Running full court is a recipe for disaster as the worst players never touch the ball and kids quit running as soon as they get tired. It is camp, after all, why push yourself? We play 3 on 3 with no dribbles to teach cutting (which works) and screening (see previous paragraph). Once we allow them to dribble again, all the cutting is out the window. My favorite campers are the ones who dribble just for the thrill of it. They are not going anywhere with the ball - no purpose or rhyme to their dribbling. They often go straight backwards with it. They don't care. They just want to have the ball for a while and feel like a real basketball player. God bless 'em.
Camp winds down with final remarks from all the coaches before we hand out candy bars to contest winners and Campers of the Day (the kids who tried hardest or did something especially admirable). I get competitive about these talks and want mine to be the best. Today, I busted out Neil Armstrong, JFK and Lil' Jon in my closing remarks about getting low to get to the basket. Not bad, huh? I'm already thinking about tomorrow's talk. I'm thinking some Sun Tzu wisdom or perhaps Plato's Allegory of the Cave.
The day is done and the coaches make a mad dash for the door. I have mastered the "I'm in a hurry to get somewhere" post-camp walk to avoid talking to parents. It is not that I don't want to talk to them, it is, well, I don't want to talk to them. Picture a bunch of country club moms and dads with cell phones against their ears wanting to find out what their kid can do to make the team next year. Chances are that I worked with that kid for two minutes throughout the day, but if I say that it looks like their kid isn't getting quality attention. Nope, I just jiggle my keys, look at my watch and bust it to the car.
Punch in, punch out.
What is there to dread? Basketball camps tend to be pretty dull affairs. Most camps are for players in their middle school years who lack the basic fundamentals. While it is vital to teach these basics, it is also boring. I have taught the same footwork station at this particular camp at least a dozen times, five or six times a day. It is like Groundhog's Day (which happens to be my friend Glenn's favorite movie...weird) without the Sonny and Cher.
Rather than endure the week alone, I'm going to take you, the reader, deep inside the workings of a rising 4th-6th grade basketball camp. In the spirit of John Feinstein's classic A Season on the Brink about a season of Indiana Hoosier basketball, I bring you My Week On the Brink at basketball camp.
After an easy hour & forty-five minute drive to the sweet sounds of Scott McClellan's audio book, I arrived for Monday's camp session. The first day of basketball camp is the easiest day unless you are in charge. I'm not in charge this week - that responsibility belongs to my coaching mentor Elliott Stroupe. In many ways, he is the Bobby Knight of our Week on the Brink. He is a veteran coach in Knoxville, a stubborn, set-in-his-ways, my-way-or-highway kind of coach that doesn't put up with much from administrators, fellow coaches, referees or parents. He would have been run out of town long ago except for two things - he can really coach and he is great with kids. Coach Stroupe's Monday is a hectic one of organization, tweaking and decisions. He spent most of today's lunch walking around the cafeteria making sure nobody was eating alone while the rest of us coaches enjoyed our stale tacos and soggy corn.
Back to my easy day, the rest of the coaching staff spends most of Monday waiting around for the organizer to make decisions. Who belongs in which group? How much time will we need now that we are behind schedule? Where are the t-shirts? Who is this kid that just showed up at 11:30 in a "Computer Camp" shirt? These types of decisions belong to one man and it isn't me. He is the Decider. I am the Follower. It pays less to be the Follower, but it is a much easier gig.
The morning began with about 30 minutes of "knockout" (a classic basketball camp game that every kid knows, expects and loves) while we waiting for stragglers and late registries. We finally get together around 9:15 to go over introductions and camp basics. Having worked so many of these camps, I can finish just about every sentence out of Coach Stroupe's mouth. Every year, for some reason only he knows, he explains how the gym is air-conditioned using a "geo-thermal tap." Every year. Why? Beats me.
From introductions we enter into the evaluation stage of camp. This is where things get good. We try to group kids by ability so there is an A group (best players) through F group (young kids with no clue). Dreams are shattered by 10:00 a.m. at basketball camp when kids realize that they are not making the A group...or the B group...or the C group. Parents who paid $150 for their kid to have improved self-esteem got ripped off.
Picking groups takes forever. There are lots of little considerations we try to take into account, like not having one girl in a group or one 5th grader, but there is no making everyone happy. Coach Stroupe will have emails and phone messages tonight about how Jimmy wants to be in Tony's group. Again, there are advantages to working camp rather than running camp.
Finally, groups are picked and camp can really begin. The heart of any good basketball camp is the learning stations. The campers come to play games and make friends, but the value is in the stations. As a coach, this is easily the most fun part of the day as I get to impart my knowledge to eager learners.
Okay, there are only about 5 eager learners. There are about 45 campers who tolerate the stations to get to the games and contests. The other 10 campers goof off through the stations and can ruin them.
My station this week is Perimeter Moves to the Basket. The kids all picture a bunch of And1 moves like they seem from The Professor and Skip To My Lou, but their inability to dribble twice without looking down at the ball limits our ability to do freestyle moves. Instead, we worked today on getting low to breeze past defenders. I mentioned Paul Pierce's ability to drive past Laker defenders because he gets low. They stared at me with blank looks. So much for my "Be Like Paul Pierce" theme for the week.
After stations, it is time for lunch. I am a sucker for free food and always put too much food on my plate. Don't worry - it all gets eaten, but I am useless for the rest of the day. The coaches spend lunch venting about which kids are already driving them crazy, but also which ones have promise or are just nice kids. We laughed today about "PIFers" who are killing our drills; PIFers are Paid In Full kids who are terrible, but, well, paid in full.
Post-lunch starts with a lesson from Coach Stroupe about how to shoot an off-handed lay-up. This is Coach at his best - teaching impressionable youngsters the basic skills of the game. Unlike some coaches who can breakdown every offense or defense known to man, but cannot teach the fundamentals in an understandable way, Coach has the volunteer shooter slowly taking baby steps on his way to properly shooting a proper lay-up. Within 5 minutes, the kid is jumping off the proper foot and using his left-hand to throw the ball off the glass. Coach Stroupe is not a miracle worker (he ain't no miracle man) so the kid is not making the left-handed lay-ups yet, but he is well on his way.
We break back into groups to work on these lay-ups for a while before finally playing some actual games. You might think this would be the best part of the day for coaches - wrong. The good side of the games is that we mostly just sit back and call an occasional foul, so it is pretty relaxing. Why aren't we giving instructions on proper plays and such? At 1:00, the campers just want to play and not listen to us anymore. Today I stopped the action to explain how a simple screen away from the ball would get someone open and start an offense, but it was only used once by a kid who in all likelihood just ran into someone on accident.
The games are usually 3 on 3 or 4 on 4 in the half court. Running full court is a recipe for disaster as the worst players never touch the ball and kids quit running as soon as they get tired. It is camp, after all, why push yourself? We play 3 on 3 with no dribbles to teach cutting (which works) and screening (see previous paragraph). Once we allow them to dribble again, all the cutting is out the window. My favorite campers are the ones who dribble just for the thrill of it. They are not going anywhere with the ball - no purpose or rhyme to their dribbling. They often go straight backwards with it. They don't care. They just want to have the ball for a while and feel like a real basketball player. God bless 'em.
Camp winds down with final remarks from all the coaches before we hand out candy bars to contest winners and Campers of the Day (the kids who tried hardest or did something especially admirable). I get competitive about these talks and want mine to be the best. Today, I busted out Neil Armstrong, JFK and Lil' Jon in my closing remarks about getting low to get to the basket. Not bad, huh? I'm already thinking about tomorrow's talk. I'm thinking some Sun Tzu wisdom or perhaps Plato's Allegory of the Cave.
The day is done and the coaches make a mad dash for the door. I have mastered the "I'm in a hurry to get somewhere" post-camp walk to avoid talking to parents. It is not that I don't want to talk to them, it is, well, I don't want to talk to them. Picture a bunch of country club moms and dads with cell phones against their ears wanting to find out what their kid can do to make the team next year. Chances are that I worked with that kid for two minutes throughout the day, but if I say that it looks like their kid isn't getting quality attention. Nope, I just jiggle my keys, look at my watch and bust it to the car.
Punch in, punch out.
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Tiger Style
The most underrated golfer on the planet is Tiger Woods. We all know he is the greatest golfer of his generation and the most clutch performer down the stretch. He already has a reel of highlights as long as any athlete, let alone golfer, in sports history. He is an endorsement machine and multi-billionaire.And underrated.
The guy is otherworldly. This weekend at the U.S. Open, the toughest test in golf thanks to the high rough, super-fast greens and brutally long layout, Tiger Woods played under par golf for 72 holes on a bad left knee that required surgery six weeks ago. He winced in pain throughout the four days of competition while playing in the most celebrated Thursday/Friday pairing in recent memory (alongside World #2 and hometown hero Phil Mickelson and World #3 Adam Scott), charging into the lead on Saturday and then sinking the final putt of the final round to force a Monday playoff.
It was a career-defining performance for mere mortals, but just another major championship for Tiger Woods. The guy has already won The Masters by 12 strokes, completed the Tiger Slam of four consecutive major championships and conquered the 2006 British Open just months after the emotional loss of his father. This weekend is a line on his resume, not the entire resume itself.
Regardless of whether Tiger or Rocco Mediate prevails during tomorrow's 18-hole playoff, this tournament was Tiger's U.S. Open. What is most amazing about it is how routine it all seemed: opening with a double-bogey on the bad knee, but rallying afterwards to stay in contention on Thursday; making a charge on the back nine Friday evening with a terrific and painful approach on the par-5 18th; the bombs for eagle on 13 and 18 on Saturday and finally the wedge from the rough and birdie putt to force the playoff.
Just another day in the career of Tiger Woods.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Chipper Reading Material
When I fall behind with my writing, I turn to others to shoulder the load. I read a couple of good pieces about Chipper's quest for .400 I wanted to pass along.This blog piece from the Wall Street Journal argues against Chipper's chances of hitting .400. If you are a stat-crunching geek, you'll enjoy the conversation here. There is one ridiculous quotation about how Chipper's last two improved seasons have been "luck" is quickly questioned and debunked. Two seasons of luck? Come on.
(Max Jack - Chipper has hit .331 over the last two seasons, much without Teixeira hitting behind him. I'm just saying...).
Next, from the fantastically named "One More Dying Quail" blog, here is a long, detailed entry about hitting .400. I'm only on Chapter 5 of it, but so far, so good. This piece is a reminder of just how tough hitting .400 is (nobody in 60+ years) and also a reminder that there are so many blogs out there better than mine.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Time To Trade Tex
It is not even the All-Star Break yet, but I'm starting to think about convincing myself of the possibility that it might be a good, maybe, for the Braves to pack it up in 2008. Hear me out.
The Braves are now a game under .500 despite an MVP-caliber season from Chipper Jones and Cy Young-caliber stuff from Tim Hudson (though he has not gotten much support from the Braves' bats). The starting rotation coming into the season (Hudson, Smoltz, Glavine, Hampton and Jurrjens) is now down to Hudson. That's right - four of the five pitchers in the Braves' opening day rotation are currently hurt.
(If you did not hear the news, Jair Jurrjens is missing tonight's start after hurting his ankle after last night's loss).
The line-up is not much better. Mark Kotsay is out hurt and reports do not look good. Chipper is battling nagging injuries across his .400 hitting body right now. Matt Diaz and his .200 hitting body are on the D.L as well.
Meanwhile, the Phillies are getting hot with a loaded line-up and piecemeal starting staff. The Wild Card is likely going to the Cardinals, Brewers, Dodgers, or Mets - all better than the Braves.
In a time like this, I think GM Frank Wren needs to know when to fold 'em. No, I'm not talking about getting Kenny Rogers from the Tigers. I'm talking about trading a switch-hitting, difference making 1st baseman - Mark Teixeira.
Why trade him? If the Braves are not in contention (which they are not), they ought to get what they can for the unrestricted free agent. There is no, no, no chance that Tex re-signs with the Braves. Atlanta won't be able to compete with offers from the big markets, nor should they. Teixeira is a fine player, but not one who deserves a big chunk of the Braves' change anyway.
So if the Braves are not contending and there is no chance they will resign Tex, they might as well get something for him. Remember - they let Jarrod Saltamacchia go to get him in a well-intentioned but ultimately unsuccessful deal. Instead of it being all for naught, the Braves could get a good prospect for Teixeira.
Of course, who would trade a good prospect for an unrestricted free agent? Baseball history teaches us that teams in contention will do just that. One example I remember off the top of my head is the Houston Astros trading for Randy Johnson. On a lesser scale, the Braves themselves did it last year for Octavio Dotel.
One quick look at the baseball landscape shows several teams that could use Teixeira. Maybe the Tampa Bay Rays would be willing to take their shot in 2008 to make the post-season. Perhaps David Ortiz's injuries will continue to plague the slugger, making the Red Sox willing to deal a young pitcher for Teixeira. The Angels could upgrade at 1st base. So could the Dodgers. There would likely be enough suitors for Teixeira to ensure a decent return for Atlanta.
If the Braves can get a good return on Teixeira, they ought to take the deal and start thinking about how to compete in 2009 and 2010.
Where There's Smoke...
Last week, my buddy (and loyal SCSB reader) Glenn was robbed. The jerks kicked down his door and took his laptop, TV, DVD player...even his detergent and the Bud Light from his fridge. At least Glenn was not home for the burglary.There is another theft in the news today after allegations from crooked NBA referee Tim Donaghy. The subject of the robbery is the 2002 Western Conference Finals game between the L.A. Lakers and Sacramento Kings. It has long been speculated that officials, who did a miserable job in Game 6, purposefully helped the Lakers in an effort to create a lucrative Game 7 and put Los Angeles (big market, big ratings) in The Finals instead of Sacramento (small market, low ratings). The game in question featured 27 4th quarter free throws for the Lakers as both Sacramento centers fouled out of the game.
This is not the only NBA conspiracy theory, though the first to be reported by an actual NBA referee (to be clear, Donaghy did not mention Game 6 specifically, but it is obviously the subject of his most recent claims). Whether one believes Donaghy or not, there is no doubt that an aura of dishonesty has haunted the NBA for years. David Stern's tenure as commissioner has been wildly successful in many ways, but also highly suspicious.
For example:
The Patrick Ewing Draft Lottery - The NBA conspiracy theories began in 1985 when Stern "randomly" pulled the New York Knicks card to receive the first pick. Everyone knew Patrick Ewing would be this first pick, the type of big man a franchise could build around for the next decade. Everyone also knew the NBA needed the Knicks to be one of the league's elite teams, so adding Patrick Ewing to the Knicks, rather than say the Milwaukee Bucks or San Antonio Spurs, would bolster the NBA in terms of ratings, interest and revenue.
Was the Knicks' envelope frozen so Stern knew which one to grab? Was the corner bent? The conspiracy theories began...
2002 Lakers/Kings game
We covered this on in the introduction. It remains the source of speculation among NBA and specifically Kings players who remain convinced that Sacramento was robbed.
2005 Rockets/Mavericks playoff series
This series is also mentioned in Donaghy's deposition. The source of the conflict here is Yao Ming. After the Mavs fell behind the Rockets 2-0, Dallas owner Mark Cuban complained about Yao's illegal screens. Sure enough, Yao was called for several cheap fouls in Game 3 and the Mavericks ended up winning in seven games. When Rockets' coach Jeff Van Gundy stated that he was told that officals were instructed to watch Yao more closely after Cuban's complaints, the league (Stern) fined Van Gundy $100,000.
2006 Heat/Mavs Finals
Another Maverick conspiracy theory, but this one goes against Cuban's club. After falling behind 0-2, Miami stormed back to win the next four games behind Dwyane Wade's seemingly endless trips to the foul line. No matter what the Mavericks did defensively, they could not avoid fouling Wade who continually drove to the basket to bounce off Dallas defenders. The Mavs' cried "foul" against all the fouls to no avail.
The Sonics Leaving Seattle
This conspiracy appears more legitimate all the time, The Sonics were sold to Clay Bennett with the promise he would keep the team in Seattle. After several "attempts" to get a needed new arena, Bennett is moving the team to Oklahoma City where he lives. Coincidence? David Stern applauded Bennett's efforts to keep the team in Seattle, but new emails show the Bennett group never planed to keep them in Washington from the moment of purchase. At best, Stern was duped by his friend into thinking Bennett would not move the Sonics. At worst, Stern was dishonest with the city of Seattle and the media about Bennett's intentions with the Sonics.
For years now, NBA fans and opponents alike have questioned the integrity of the game and specifically its commissioner. The question now, amidst the most recent allegation, is whether there is fire with all the smoke.
I'm afraid the answer, in several of these cases, is most likely yes.
Monday, June 9, 2008
Taking Stock of the Baseball Season
In a long season sport like baseball, it is easy to lose track of the major storylines until long after they have developed. Thank goodness for the Scenic City Sportsblog to track down nine innings of news from the 2008 MLB season.
1st inning - Three Up
The National League division leaders are the Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Cubs and Arizona Diamondbacks. Anyone surprised? The cream has risen in the N.L.
The Phillies are one starting pitcher away from being the clear favorite in the league (C.C. Sabathia?). They are up 3.5 games in the East without getting much of anything from Ryan Howard so far (.214 average with 87 strikeouts).
The Diamondbacks are one hitter (Adam Dunn?) from being a favorite behind their dominant starting staff. Who wants to meet these guys in the playoffs to face Brandon Webb, Dan Haren and Randy Johnson?
Meanwhile, the Cubs are the best team in the National League. They have a legitimate Cy Young contender (Carlos Zambrano), a legit closer (Kerry Wood) and a tough line-up with established names (Soriano, Lee and Ramirez) and exciting new-comers (Fukodome and Soto). Could this be the year for the cursed Cubs?
2nd inning - Three Down
The Rockies, Indians and Tigers entered the season with great promise after last year's success (Rockies & Tribe) or big trades/signings (Tigers). They have all flopped. The Rockies have suffered from injuries and players coming back down to Earth after last year's magical post-season run. Only the Mariners have a worse record than the defending National League champions.
The Indians are simply not hitting. Their team average is .241 right now, 29th in the league. Only the Washington Nationals hit worse. Despite Cliff Lee's breakout start, the Indians need to refill Joe Boo's rum quickly if they are going to catch the White Sox in the Central.
The Tigers are the season's greatest mystery. They are now 10 games back of the Sox, 10 games under .500. They are in the top half of the league in most major offensive categories, but seem to be feast or famine with their offensive output. Their pitching, however, is another story. They are 12th in the league in ERA and the only team without a complete game from a starter. Nate Robertson cannot get anyone out, Kenny Rogers is starting to look less like the The Gambler and more like The Coward of the County, and Jeremy Bonderman is out for the year with a blood clot. The D-Train has been the Little Engine That Can't so far in Motown.
3rd inning - Warning Track Power
Besides the Tigers, a few other pre-season darlings have disappointed in the first half of the season. The Atlanta Braves are a remarkable 7-21 on the road and even worse in one run games (3-17). The Milwaukee Brewers got off to a slow start, but have battled back to contention in the N.L. Central. The New York Yankees and Mets both look old and vulnerable before the heat of summer has even set in.
If any of these teams have a real chance of contending in October, it is the Milwaukee Brewers. They have good starting pitching with a great ace in Ben Sheets. The Eric Gagne signing was the biggest mistake in Milwaukee this side of Bob Uecker's speedo, but the Brew Crew seems to be righting the ship with Solomon Torres closing the door and a line-up of slugger after right-handed slugger.
Two of the surprises of 2008 so far are running out of gas in early June. The Florida teams in Tampa Bay and Miami got off to great starts, but the Rays seem to be coming unglued after fights against Boston and among themselves (yesterday in Texas), while the Marlins lost 6 of 8 before winning the weekend's games against Cincinnati.
4th inning - Can of Corn
While several teams have been up and down throughout the first part of the baseball season, two of the early favorites in the American League are rolling along yet again. The Boston Red Sox have the best record in the American League with a 26-6 home record. What is remarkable about the BoSox so far is their ability to overcome problems with their superstars. Big Papi is not hitting - J.D. Drew has picked him up. Josh Beckett has been hurting - Dice-K and Jon Lester have picked up the slack.
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in California, U.S.A. are already pulling away in the A.L. West. The Angels have six legitimate starting pitchers (just like the BoSox), four big-time outfielders and one of the best managers in the game in Mike Scioscia. The two teams seem to be on a collision course for the pennant (I'm not sold on the White Sox yet).
5th inning - Ladies Love the Long Ball
The home run leaders through 60+ games are a odd collection of names. Josh Hamilton? Dan Uggla? Carlos Quentin? While traditional sluggers like Lance Berkman, Manny Ramirez, Adam Dunn and Jason Giambi are near the top of their respective leagues in dingers, the emergence of guys like Hamilton, Uggla and Quentin remind us that the Steriod Era is in baseball's past.
The only player with over 20 home runs so far is Philadelphia's Chase Utley. The second baseman might be the best young player in baseball (so says President Bush) and 2008 has been his coming out party. Playing in the shadow of MVPs Ryan Howard and Jimmy Rollins, Utley is quietly in contention for the Triple Crown as he leads the league in home runs and RBI. While Chipper and Berkman have garnered headlines in the opening months of the season, Utley is the early favorite for the league MVP on a championship contending ball club.
6th inning - Home Field Advantage
Weird, isn't it? Right now, there are only three teams (Angels, Phillies and the surprising Cardinals) who have a road record over .500. While baseball does give its home team the advantage of batting last, there is hardly an explanation for the disparity in home and road records throughout the MLB. Is it youth? Coincidence? How do you explain it?
7th inning - Time to Stretch
One of the emerging storylines of the season is the tiny strike zone being used by umpires in both leagues. Games are longer and pitch counts are up so far as the zone has narrowed from black to black while basically being the same from knees to belt.
The source of the change is the rating system used for the umpires that encourages them to call balls rather than strikes. The QuesTec system used by Major League Baseball determines whether each pitch is a ball or strike. If an umpire calls a ball (according to Q-Tec) a strike, he gets a demerit for missing the call. If he calls a strikes (according to Q-Tec) a ball, there is no penalty. The lesson? If the pitch is close, call it a ball. There is no longer much personality among umpire's strike zones (that guy has a wide zone, that guy won't call it low, etc.) as everyone is held to the QuesTec standard.
8th inning - Call to the Bullpen
The following players are currently on the Disabled List or out hurt:
Chipper Jones, John Smoltz, Curt Schilling, David Ortiz, Daisuke Matsuzaka, Travis Hafner, Matt Holliday, Jeremy Bonderman, Gary Sheffield, Kelvim Escobar, Chone Figgins, Rafael Furcal, Andruw Jones, Jason Schmidt, Nomar Garciaparra, Eric Gagne, Moises Alou, Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy, Mike Sweeney, Frank Thomas, Xavier Nady, Jake Peavy, Jason Isringhausen, Chris Carpenter (nice name), Mark Mulder, Rick Ankiel, Carlos Pena, Michael Young, Hank Blalock, Shannon Stewart, Paul Lo Duca, Ryan Zimmerman and Chad Cordero.
(Exhale).
Will someone get these guys some HGH or greenies ASAP? I'm not sure how the Washington Nationals are fielding a team right now with the number of injuries in their dugout (five opening day starters are on the Nats' D.L.). The baseball season has always been a grind, but this year it seems to be grinding away some the game's best players.
9th inning - Start the Bus
The long baseball season gets really long when you are playing for pride in June. The Mariners, Royals, Tigers, Padres, Nationals, Giants and Rockies can already start thinking about 2009.
1st inning - Three Up
The National League division leaders are the Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Cubs and Arizona Diamondbacks. Anyone surprised? The cream has risen in the N.L.
The Phillies are one starting pitcher away from being the clear favorite in the league (C.C. Sabathia?). They are up 3.5 games in the East without getting much of anything from Ryan Howard so far (.214 average with 87 strikeouts). The Diamondbacks are one hitter (Adam Dunn?) from being a favorite behind their dominant starting staff. Who wants to meet these guys in the playoffs to face Brandon Webb, Dan Haren and Randy Johnson?
Meanwhile, the Cubs are the best team in the National League. They have a legitimate Cy Young contender (Carlos Zambrano), a legit closer (Kerry Wood) and a tough line-up with established names (Soriano, Lee and Ramirez) and exciting new-comers (Fukodome and Soto). Could this be the year for the cursed Cubs?
2nd inning - Three Down
The Rockies, Indians and Tigers entered the season with great promise after last year's success (Rockies & Tribe) or big trades/signings (Tigers). They have all flopped. The Rockies have suffered from injuries and players coming back down to Earth after last year's magical post-season run. Only the Mariners have a worse record than the defending National League champions.
The Indians are simply not hitting. Their team average is .241 right now, 29th in the league. Only the Washington Nationals hit worse. Despite Cliff Lee's breakout start, the Indians need to refill Joe Boo's rum quickly if they are going to catch the White Sox in the Central.
The Tigers are the season's greatest mystery. They are now 10 games back of the Sox, 10 games under .500. They are in the top half of the league in most major offensive categories, but seem to be feast or famine with their offensive output. Their pitching, however, is another story. They are 12th in the league in ERA and the only team without a complete game from a starter. Nate Robertson cannot get anyone out, Kenny Rogers is starting to look less like the The Gambler and more like The Coward of the County, and Jeremy Bonderman is out for the year with a blood clot. The D-Train has been the Little Engine That Can't so far in Motown.
3rd inning - Warning Track Power
Besides the Tigers, a few other pre-season darlings have disappointed in the first half of the season. The Atlanta Braves are a remarkable 7-21 on the road and even worse in one run games (3-17). The Milwaukee Brewers got off to a slow start, but have battled back to contention in the N.L. Central. The New York Yankees and Mets both look old and vulnerable before the heat of summer has even set in.
If any of these teams have a real chance of contending in October, it is the Milwaukee Brewers. They have good starting pitching with a great ace in Ben Sheets. The Eric Gagne signing was the biggest mistake in Milwaukee this side of Bob Uecker's speedo, but the Brew Crew seems to be righting the ship with Solomon Torres closing the door and a line-up of slugger after right-handed slugger.
Two of the surprises of 2008 so far are running out of gas in early June. The Florida teams in Tampa Bay and Miami got off to great starts, but the Rays seem to be coming unglued after fights against Boston and among themselves (yesterday in Texas), while the Marlins lost 6 of 8 before winning the weekend's games against Cincinnati.4th inning - Can of Corn
While several teams have been up and down throughout the first part of the baseball season, two of the early favorites in the American League are rolling along yet again. The Boston Red Sox have the best record in the American League with a 26-6 home record. What is remarkable about the BoSox so far is their ability to overcome problems with their superstars. Big Papi is not hitting - J.D. Drew has picked him up. Josh Beckett has been hurting - Dice-K and Jon Lester have picked up the slack.
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in California, U.S.A. are already pulling away in the A.L. West. The Angels have six legitimate starting pitchers (just like the BoSox), four big-time outfielders and one of the best managers in the game in Mike Scioscia. The two teams seem to be on a collision course for the pennant (I'm not sold on the White Sox yet).
5th inning - Ladies Love the Long Ball
The home run leaders through 60+ games are a odd collection of names. Josh Hamilton? Dan Uggla? Carlos Quentin? While traditional sluggers like Lance Berkman, Manny Ramirez, Adam Dunn and Jason Giambi are near the top of their respective leagues in dingers, the emergence of guys like Hamilton, Uggla and Quentin remind us that the Steriod Era is in baseball's past.
The only player with over 20 home runs so far is Philadelphia's Chase Utley. The second baseman might be the best young player in baseball (so says President Bush) and 2008 has been his coming out party. Playing in the shadow of MVPs Ryan Howard and Jimmy Rollins, Utley is quietly in contention for the Triple Crown as he leads the league in home runs and RBI. While Chipper and Berkman have garnered headlines in the opening months of the season, Utley is the early favorite for the league MVP on a championship contending ball club.
6th inning - Home Field Advantage
Weird, isn't it? Right now, there are only three teams (Angels, Phillies and the surprising Cardinals) who have a road record over .500. While baseball does give its home team the advantage of batting last, there is hardly an explanation for the disparity in home and road records throughout the MLB. Is it youth? Coincidence? How do you explain it?
7th inning - Time to Stretch
One of the emerging storylines of the season is the tiny strike zone being used by umpires in both leagues. Games are longer and pitch counts are up so far as the zone has narrowed from black to black while basically being the same from knees to belt.
The source of the change is the rating system used for the umpires that encourages them to call balls rather than strikes. The QuesTec system used by Major League Baseball determines whether each pitch is a ball or strike. If an umpire calls a ball (according to Q-Tec) a strike, he gets a demerit for missing the call. If he calls a strikes (according to Q-Tec) a ball, there is no penalty. The lesson? If the pitch is close, call it a ball. There is no longer much personality among umpire's strike zones (that guy has a wide zone, that guy won't call it low, etc.) as everyone is held to the QuesTec standard.8th inning - Call to the Bullpen
The following players are currently on the Disabled List or out hurt:
Chipper Jones, John Smoltz, Curt Schilling, David Ortiz, Daisuke Matsuzaka, Travis Hafner, Matt Holliday, Jeremy Bonderman, Gary Sheffield, Kelvim Escobar, Chone Figgins, Rafael Furcal, Andruw Jones, Jason Schmidt, Nomar Garciaparra, Eric Gagne, Moises Alou, Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy, Mike Sweeney, Frank Thomas, Xavier Nady, Jake Peavy, Jason Isringhausen, Chris Carpenter (nice name), Mark Mulder, Rick Ankiel, Carlos Pena, Michael Young, Hank Blalock, Shannon Stewart, Paul Lo Duca, Ryan Zimmerman and Chad Cordero.
(Exhale).
Will someone get these guys some HGH or greenies ASAP? I'm not sure how the Washington Nationals are fielding a team right now with the number of injuries in their dugout (five opening day starters are on the Nats' D.L.). The baseball season has always been a grind, but this year it seems to be grinding away some the game's best players.
9th inning - Start the Bus
The long baseball season gets really long when you are playing for pride in June. The Mariners, Royals, Tigers, Padres, Nationals, Giants and Rockies can already start thinking about 2009.
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Swept
So much for dominating at Turner Field. The Philadelphia Phillies rolled into Atlanta and, without even using their best pitcher, swept three games from the Braves. What a frustrating series. The Braves were one out and a routine catch away from winning on Friday night, wasted a solid outing from Jo-Jo Reyes on Saturday and then left 23 men on base in Sunday's 6-3 loss.
Jeff Francoeur left six men on base himself as his clutch-hitting continues to be a maddening storyline of the season. With Chipper Jones and Brian McCann on the bench today, Frenchy needed to come through in the clutch. He did not. Francoeur batted 6th, behind Kelly Johnson for goodness sake, and once again demonstrated why Bobby Cox is losing faith in his big right-fielder. The guy has to deliver some RBIs.
The Braves have Monday off before a long road trip that starts in Chicago against the top-of-the-league Cubs.
Saturday, June 7, 2008
Oh, To Be Young
More than any game all season, the Braves showed their youth last night against the Philadelphia Phillies. There is no doubt that the young Braves are exciting, promising and fearless. They are also dumb, inconsistent and frustrating.Yunel Escobar (25 years old) and Kelly Johnson (26) personified this youth movement in the opening game against the Phils. The two combined on a brilliant double-play to get Tim Hudson out of a bases loaded, one out jam. Escobar dove to his left to make a diving stop and flipped the ball to Johnson who made a fantastic turn to complete the twin killing. It was exciting, promising and fearless.
The two also made a pair of dumb, inconsistent and frustrating plays that spoiled Atlanta's chance of winning. With the bases loaded and one out, Yunel Escobar made a stupid mistake of not immediately tagging on Jeff Francoeur's line drive to the outfield (the rule is always tag up at third because you will always score if it drops). Escobar compounded the mistake by attempting to retreat and still tag up on the play. He was thrown out at home by 15 feet, killing the rally.
Kelly Johnson made the final, critical mistake in the 9th by one-handing a simple big league fly ball that would have won the game for Atlanta. The ball hit the palm of his glove, fell to the turf and allowed Eric Bruntlett to score the tying run.
Bruntlett was in scoring position because of the mistakes of Blaine Boyer (26) who walked two batters in the 9th and allowed Bruntlett to move into scoring position with a stolen base without the slightest effort to hold him close. It is easy to forget, but while Chipper, Glavine, Hudson and Smoltz offer the Braves veteran leadership, the Braves are a very young ball club. Look at the names and ages of the guys the Braves are counting upon this year:
Yunel Escobar (25)
Kelly Johnson (26)
Brian McCann (24)
Jeff Francoeur (24)
Gregor Blanco (24)
Omar Infante (26)
Jo-Jo Reyes (24)
Jair Jurrjens (22)
Blaine Boyer (26)
To put it all into perspective, the Braves tonight will likely have a battery of Reyes (24) and McCann (24), Escobar (25), Johnson (26) and Blanco (24) up the middle, and Blanco, Infante (26) and Francoeur (24) in the outfield.
Fifteen players on the Braves 25-man roster were born in the 1980s. Tonight's opponent, the Phillies (who just happen to be in 1st place in the N.L. East), have just six.
Is it any wonder the Braves struggle on the road and sometimes give games away at home? Is it any wonder the Braves struggle in one-run games?
The fact is that the Braves are basically rebuilding with a handful of solid veterans keeping them in the playoff hunt.
Friday, June 6, 2008
Chipper Blasts 400 - Putting It Into Perspective
Chipper's magical season continued last night by crushing his 400th home run. The story has gotten lost in the national media coverage of the Celtics/Lakers and the Red Sox explosion/implosion last night.So what exactly does 400 career home runs mean? It puts Chipper into 43rd place in all-time home runs, just ahead of Dale Murphy, Al Kaline, and Andres Galarraga and just behind Duke Snider and Darrell Evans.
It gives Chipper more career dingers than Johnny Bench, Orlando Cepada, Tony Perez and Joe Dimaggio - all Hall of Famers.
He has the 3rd most home runs of any switch hitter, trailing only Mickey Mantle and Eddie Murray. He is the only switch hitter in baseball history with a career .300 average and over 300 home runs.
He has more career home runs than any Atlanta Brave (remembering that Hank Aaron was a Milwaukee Braves for much of his career). Take a trip down memory lane here.
If there was any doubt about Chipper's Cooperstown credentials, this season has erased them.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
NBA Finals Breakdown
The NBA got the Finals match-up it wanted between the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers. It starts tonight, so let's breakdown the match-ups:Point Guard - Advantage Lakers
Derek Fisher has been a key addition for the Lakers this year. Can you picture this team in the Finals with Smush Parker guiding it? Me neither. Rajon Rondo provides speed for the Celtics, but he has been shaky throughout the playoffs and continues to be left alone on offense as teams double Garnett and Pierce. Sam Cassell has been a bust as an addition to the Celtic backcourt, so the Lakers have a clear advantage here.
Wings - Advantage Lakers (barely)
Kobe Bryant & Sasha Vujacic vs. Ray Allen & Paul Pierce. The Series will be won or lost here. Can the Celtics hold Kobe in check for four games? Who will guard Kobe? Will Pierce go off again like he did in Game 7 against Cleveland. What about Ray Allen? Is he back or a question mark? Will Sasha give Pierce fits like he did Ginobili?
The answers to these questions will determine the outcome of the series. I cannot pick against the best player on the floor, so I'll go with Kobe and the Lakers here. If Ray Allen shows up, I might like the Celtics more in this regard.
Post - Advantage Celtics (barely)
Lamar Odom & Pau Gasol vs. Kevin Garnett & Kendrick Perkins. Garnett is going to bring energy, rebounds and points every night. Odom and Gasol can get lost at times (I watched Gasol no-show 12 straight playoff losses in Memphis). For that reason, I think Boston has an advantage here. Perkins is a non-factor. Again, I'll take the best player over two really good ones. Barely.
Bench - Advantage Lakers
The Lakers have a terrific bench led by Luke Walton. They bring energy with Rony Turiaf, Jordan Farmar, and Vladimir Radmanovic. The Celtics can only boast James Posey, P.J. Brown, and a bunch of inconsistent non-factors. The Celtics will have to play The Big Three (Allen barely counts these days) for big minutes in the series.
Coach - Advantage Lakers
9 Championship Rings vs. Doc Rivers. Next.
Motivation - Advantage Celtics
Kobe is playing for his first championship without Shaq, but he has to know that the future is extremely bright in Los Angeles for a run of Finals (remember, Andrew Bynum is out with a bum knee right now). For Boston's Big Three, this is their first and best (and perhaps only) chance for a championship.
Intangibles - Advantage Celtics
The biggest advantage here is the home court advantage in Boston. The Lakers will have to win at least one in Boston to win the series - no easy task. Posey could cause defensive problems for Bryant, but who can guard Garnett for the Lakers?
Prediction - Lakers in 7
In the end, I cannot pick Doc Rivers over Phil Jackson. I'm pulling for Garnett and Pierce to get rings (can't say I care about Ray Allen), but think the series will return to Boston at 3-2 Lakers and Kobe will take over in the final game to give Phil his 10th title.
The Griffey Legacy
If you haven't heard, and it is possible you have not with the lack of attention it has received, Ken Griffey, Jr. is one home run away from 600 for his career. There are only five players in MLB history with that many dingers - Bonds, Aaron, Ruth, Mays and Sosa. Two of the five names are clearly tainted. The next addition to the club is clearly not.Ken Griffey, Jr. was destined to be the greatest baseball player to ever take the field. He had a sweet swing, amazing athleticism, a big league pedigree (his dad was part of the Cincinnati Reds' Big Red Machine) and a million dollar smile that graced multiple commercials and video games.
He also produced at the plate. Griffey put up monster numbers during the late 1990s during the height of the Steroids Era (he has never even been rumored to have taken the juice). It is easy to forget how good Griffey was during his prime, so check out these numbers:1996 - 49 HR, 140 RBI, .303
1997 - 56 HR, 147 RBI, .304
1998 - 56 HR, 146 RBI, .284
1999 - 48 HR, 134 RBI, .285
2000 - 40 HR, 118 RBI, .271
Those are ridiculous numbers in any era. There was more to Griffey's game than just putting up numbers (ala Slammin' Sammy). Griffey was a 10 time Gold Glover with several signature catches in the Kingdome's centerfield. He was also a clutch performer, scoring the most memorable run in Mariner history as he raced home against the New York Yankees in the 1995 playoffs.
He had it all, though he was hidden from much of America while playing in Seattle. Many of us East Coasters knew Griffey was good, but didn't know just how good. The 1995 playoffs were his initial showcase, but Griffey was largely shined in obscurity in Seattle.
That was all supposed to change with The Kid's arrival in Cincinnati. The Griffey-to-Cincinnati deal was a steal for the Reds. Or so it seemed. After initial success in 2000, The Kid simply could not stay healthy in Cincinnati. Between 2002-2004, Griffey missed 260 games with a variety of injuries.
Now, as he approaches an amazing milestone, he barely gets mentioned as one of the game's all-time greats. Baseball rewards longevity, but it is also a numbers sport. With 600 career dingers, Griffey has the numbers to be considered one of the great centerfielders ever to play the game. If not for a string of unfortunate injuries, Hank Aaron's record 755 would have fallen to a classy slugger rather than an arrogant cheat. Perhaps no athlete has suffered more from injuries than Griffey. His legacy has been tarnished by a body that broke down in Cincinnati after producing so much in Seattle. The injuries set back the Reds for a decade, but also set Griffey aside in baseball's collective mind. As he approaches 600, it is time to remember the brilliance, excitement and disappointment that is the Griffey Legacy.
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Braves Mailbag!
After the Braves blew a two run lead in the 9th inning Wednesday afternoon, I decided to open up the 'ole Braves mailbag to ease the pain.
(The letters are fake; the answer are real).
Hear the news today? I'm out for the year - more time to spend with Hampton - John S.
First, how did you get this letter to me so quickly? Second, please refrain from mentioning Mike Hampton because it makes me think we'll never see you on the mound again. In fact, I'm predicting this is it for you, Smoltzy. Are you really willing to go through surgery and recovery to come back to a team without Glavine (retired) or Tex (signed with Yankees)? The Braves are barely a playoff team now and it is hard to picture the team being better next year. Then again, if the youth continues to grow up and improve, the Tex money is well spent, Jordan Schafer is the real deal, Jo-Jo, Jair and Jorge (Killer J's?) mature into solid starters...it might be worth one more run at the Series. The closer role looks like it will still be up for grabs...
I'm starting to convince myself into believing you. Come back, John!
Miss me? - Matt D.
I wish I did. I wanted you to have a great year in left, but the evidence suggests you are not a full-time big league outfielder. You play hard. You run hard. You try hard. The results, however, scream platoon player/pinch hitter.
Why am I not batting lead-off? - Gregor
Because Joe Simpson keeps calling for it. You think Bobby Cox is going to listen to some crappy catcher-turned-analyst?
Actually, I'm not totally sold on you batting lead-off either. The positives are your speed, patience and pretty good OBP (.388 right now). The negatives are your youth and lack of pop (.352 slugging). Keep getting on base and making things happen with your legs and we'll see you up in the order soon enough.
What about me as lead-off? - Josh A.
I wish you showed the slightest bit of pop to justify it. You clearly have the speed to be a terror on the bases, but I have not seen a decent swing out of you yet. Back to Richmond soon, Josh.
What about me? - Yunel
We have a theme working here, don't we? Yunel - TAKE A PITCH! You swing at the first pitch every single at-bat. First, that is a lousy strategy because you are being fed first pitches out of the zone that you cannot handle. Second, lead-off hitters are supposed to work the count every once in a while. A base on balls is a good thing for a lead-off guy. Finally, you are hitting just .245 on the road this year, so something isn't working. Like Axl said - "Just a little patience...yeah, yeah."
Me? - Kelly
Are you serious? All these letters about the lead-off spot? You'd think the offense was sputtering...oh, yeah. It is.
You had your chance. You didn't get on base. Next.
Gregor - I'm starting to really warm up to the idea of giving you a look at lead-off. It isn't a pretty picture at the top of the order right now, is it?
Impressed? - Jo-Jo
You better believe it! You look like a legit major league lefty these days. And, on top of that, you are my daughter Abby's favorite player. She says, "Jo-Jo" all the time. Actually, it is more like JoJoJoJoJoJo. It might actually be a Buddhist chant that I don't know about. I'm not really sure.
Back to you, Jo-Jo, I'm very impressed. With Smoltz out for the year, you have a chance to step up as an every 5th day guy on a playoff contender. I was ready to send you to single A after last year, but there is something different about you so far this season. Keep it up.
Isn't it time I got some love for my work this year - Roger M.
Roger McDowell - you have done wonders this year. The pitching has been such a pleasant surprise - both starting and relieving. With all the injuries, the staff could have crumbled. Instead, the Braves are getting good pitching every night.
Kudos, Roger - The Second Spitter.
Why am I not getting more blame for the offensive woes? - Terry P.
Because we still and always will love you, Mr. Pendleton. You took us to the promised land in 1991 and we have not forgotten. For that, you are getting a pass.
Otherwise, I would point out that our hitters look lost on the road without any patience or game plan at the plate. It might not be fair to blame you, so I won't. I'll just use innuendo instead.
I feel a little better now. Time to close up the 'ole Braves mailbag.
(The letters are fake; the answer are real).
Hear the news today? I'm out for the year - more time to spend with Hampton - John S.
First, how did you get this letter to me so quickly? Second, please refrain from mentioning Mike Hampton because it makes me think we'll never see you on the mound again. In fact, I'm predicting this is it for you, Smoltzy. Are you really willing to go through surgery and recovery to come back to a team without Glavine (retired) or Tex (signed with Yankees)? The Braves are barely a playoff team now and it is hard to picture the team being better next year. Then again, if the youth continues to grow up and improve, the Tex money is well spent, Jordan Schafer is the real deal, Jo-Jo, Jair and Jorge (Killer J's?) mature into solid starters...it might be worth one more run at the Series. The closer role looks like it will still be up for grabs...
I'm starting to convince myself into believing you. Come back, John!
Miss me? - Matt D.
I wish I did. I wanted you to have a great year in left, but the evidence suggests you are not a full-time big league outfielder. You play hard. You run hard. You try hard. The results, however, scream platoon player/pinch hitter.
Why am I not batting lead-off? - Gregor
Because Joe Simpson keeps calling for it. You think Bobby Cox is going to listen to some crappy catcher-turned-analyst?
Actually, I'm not totally sold on you batting lead-off either. The positives are your speed, patience and pretty good OBP (.388 right now). The negatives are your youth and lack of pop (.352 slugging). Keep getting on base and making things happen with your legs and we'll see you up in the order soon enough.
What about me as lead-off? - Josh A.
I wish you showed the slightest bit of pop to justify it. You clearly have the speed to be a terror on the bases, but I have not seen a decent swing out of you yet. Back to Richmond soon, Josh.
What about me? - Yunel
We have a theme working here, don't we? Yunel - TAKE A PITCH! You swing at the first pitch every single at-bat. First, that is a lousy strategy because you are being fed first pitches out of the zone that you cannot handle. Second, lead-off hitters are supposed to work the count every once in a while. A base on balls is a good thing for a lead-off guy. Finally, you are hitting just .245 on the road this year, so something isn't working. Like Axl said - "Just a little patience...yeah, yeah."
Me? - Kelly
Are you serious? All these letters about the lead-off spot? You'd think the offense was sputtering...oh, yeah. It is.
You had your chance. You didn't get on base. Next.
Gregor - I'm starting to really warm up to the idea of giving you a look at lead-off. It isn't a pretty picture at the top of the order right now, is it?
Impressed? - Jo-Jo
You better believe it! You look like a legit major league lefty these days. And, on top of that, you are my daughter Abby's favorite player. She says, "Jo-Jo" all the time. Actually, it is more like JoJoJoJoJoJo. It might actually be a Buddhist chant that I don't know about. I'm not really sure.
Back to you, Jo-Jo, I'm very impressed. With Smoltz out for the year, you have a chance to step up as an every 5th day guy on a playoff contender. I was ready to send you to single A after last year, but there is something different about you so far this season. Keep it up.
Isn't it time I got some love for my work this year - Roger M.
Roger McDowell - you have done wonders this year. The pitching has been such a pleasant surprise - both starting and relieving. With all the injuries, the staff could have crumbled. Instead, the Braves are getting good pitching every night.
Kudos, Roger - The Second Spitter.
Why am I not getting more blame for the offensive woes? - Terry P.
Because we still and always will love you, Mr. Pendleton. You took us to the promised land in 1991 and we have not forgotten. For that, you are getting a pass.
Otherwise, I would point out that our hitters look lost on the road without any patience or game plan at the plate. It might not be fair to blame you, so I won't. I'll just use innuendo instead.
I feel a little better now. Time to close up the 'ole Braves mailbag.
Chipper Hits 399 in Braves Win
Greg Norton was the hero last night in the Braves 5-4 win over Florida. Dan Uggla slugged two homers, but it was an 8th inning rallied started by Chipper and finished by Greg Norton that sunk the Fish.
Chipper hit his 399th homer of his Hall of Fame career last night in the 1st inning. We are into June and he is still hitting over .400.
At this point, the Braves have the best home record in baseball and the worst road record in baseball. Weird.
John Smoltz was not brought out for the save opportunity last night after complaining of pain Monday. Rafael Soriano closed the deal for Atlanta last night. In other pitching news, Mike Hampton...never mind.
Off to Great Grandma's with the girls - several articles in the works that will be up today and tomorrow. I'm working out the summer kinks right now (i.e. when to write without a 45-minute free period in the morning) and am thinking about some major overhauls of the site. Stay tuned.
Chipper hit his 399th homer of his Hall of Fame career last night in the 1st inning. We are into June and he is still hitting over .400.
At this point, the Braves have the best home record in baseball and the worst road record in baseball. Weird.
John Smoltz was not brought out for the save opportunity last night after complaining of pain Monday. Rafael Soriano closed the deal for Atlanta last night. In other pitching news, Mike Hampton...never mind.
Off to Great Grandma's with the girls - several articles in the works that will be up today and tomorrow. I'm working out the summer kinks right now (i.e. when to write without a 45-minute free period in the morning) and am thinking about some major overhauls of the site. Stay tuned.
Monday, June 2, 2008
Mixed Feelings About Mixed Martial Arts
I have always been a lover, not a fighter.
The reason for this is not a moral high road or good up-bringing so much as common
sense. I'm 5'10, 165 lbs and the least intimidating physical presence this side of Matthew Broderick (who people are most likely to say I remind them of).
Despite the fact that I'm no fighter, I do like a good fight. Anything in a ring is good by me. I love a good boxing fight. I have always been a wrestling fan. My short list of personal heroes goes beyond Benjamin Franklin and Abraham Lincoln to include Muhammad Ali and Ric Flair.
Which brings me to MMA - Mixed Martial Arts. It is exciting, brutal and the latest controversial craze. John McCain famously called it "human cockfighting" (he is also against gay marriage...I'm not the first nor will I be the last to make that joke). For everyone who finds it to be Roman gladiators Version 2.0, there is another who loves the combination of boxing, kick-boxing and all those martial arts I don't understand.
I've watched enough on television and the Internet to know that I don't know how much I like MMA. Like millions of others, I watched some of the EliteXC fighting on CBS Saturday night (EliteXC is a different company from the more popular Ultimate Fighting (UFC)). It has been the talk of the sports world as talking heads try to figure out if it is athletic competition or freak show.
I have no doubt about the athletic competition part. The appeal of MMA is that the fighters have a wide array of weapons to win the fights. There are stand-up artists, wrestlers, submission experts, guys with wicked elbows or knees. A fight can look to be going one way, the suddenly be over with a victory the other way (Brock Lesnar suffered this type of reversal of fortune in his UFC debut) because of the crazy submissions and counters in MMA. The guys are usually cut out of stone with less body fat than brain cells. They put their faces and bodies on the line for glory in the cage. I have always been inspired by seeing guys literally give their lives just to win a contest.
The problem I have with Mixed Martial Arts is the brutality. There are moments in the fights when I have a hard time watching it. The "ground and pound" aspect of the sport often leaves a man bloodied, broken and unconscious on the mat. Watching a man take multiple elbow strikes or punches to his unprotected face is disgusting, but it is also fairly common in the sport.
Proponents of MMA argue that the quick knockouts are better for the fighters than the slow, steady pounding of a boxing match. I have watched my fair share of Arturo Gatti fights and know these proponents are correct. Most of the time the fighters "tap out" before a submission hold chokes them unconscious or snaps their arm in half. Why don't I feel as uneasy watching a boxing fight that is more likely to end up in brain damage or death (there has yet to be a specific case of either in MMA) as i do an Ultimate Fight?
These mixed feelings about mixed martial arts make events like Saturday night feel like a horror movie. I cannot decide if I'm enjoying it or wishing it would just be over. Chances are I'll keep coming back for more as I figure it out.
The reason for this is not a moral high road or good up-bringing so much as common
sense. I'm 5'10, 165 lbs and the least intimidating physical presence this side of Matthew Broderick (who people are most likely to say I remind them of).Despite the fact that I'm no fighter, I do like a good fight. Anything in a ring is good by me. I love a good boxing fight. I have always been a wrestling fan. My short list of personal heroes goes beyond Benjamin Franklin and Abraham Lincoln to include Muhammad Ali and Ric Flair.
Which brings me to MMA - Mixed Martial Arts. It is exciting, brutal and the latest controversial craze. John McCain famously called it "human cockfighting" (he is also against gay marriage...I'm not the first nor will I be the last to make that joke). For everyone who finds it to be Roman gladiators Version 2.0, there is another who loves the combination of boxing, kick-boxing and all those martial arts I don't understand.
I've watched enough on television and the Internet to know that I don't know how much I like MMA. Like millions of others, I watched some of the EliteXC fighting on CBS Saturday night (EliteXC is a different company from the more popular Ultimate Fighting (UFC)). It has been the talk of the sports world as talking heads try to figure out if it is athletic competition or freak show.
I have no doubt about the athletic competition part. The appeal of MMA is that the fighters have a wide array of weapons to win the fights. There are stand-up artists, wrestlers, submission experts, guys with wicked elbows or knees. A fight can look to be going one way, the suddenly be over with a victory the other way (Brock Lesnar suffered this type of reversal of fortune in his UFC debut) because of the crazy submissions and counters in MMA. The guys are usually cut out of stone with less body fat than brain cells. They put their faces and bodies on the line for glory in the cage. I have always been inspired by seeing guys literally give their lives just to win a contest.The problem I have with Mixed Martial Arts is the brutality. There are moments in the fights when I have a hard time watching it. The "ground and pound" aspect of the sport often leaves a man bloodied, broken and unconscious on the mat. Watching a man take multiple elbow strikes or punches to his unprotected face is disgusting, but it is also fairly common in the sport. Proponents of MMA argue that the quick knockouts are better for the fighters than the slow, steady pounding of a boxing match. I have watched my fair share of Arturo Gatti fights and know these proponents are correct. Most of the time the fighters "tap out" before a submission hold chokes them unconscious or snaps their arm in half. Why don't I feel as uneasy watching a boxing fight that is more likely to end up in brain damage or death (there has yet to be a specific case of either in MMA) as i do an Ultimate Fight?
These mixed feelings about mixed martial arts make events like Saturday night feel like a horror movie. I cannot decide if I'm enjoying it or wishing it would just be over. Chances are I'll keep coming back for more as I figure it out.
Everything's Right in Atlanta Tonight
Not really, but it feels that way after Yunel Escobar blasted a two-run 10th inning homerun to beat the Florida Marlins at Turner Field. The Braves had a lead, blew a lead, had a lead, blew a lead, tied the game and then won it in extra innings. Quite a night for the enigma that is the Atlanta Braves.
John Smoltz came of the D.L. and proceeded to blow the save with pitches up in the strike zone to the heart of the Marlins' order. Down 5-4 in the bottom of the 9th, the Braves rallied for a run behind two walks, a fielder's choice and a wild pitch. That's right - no hits.
The 10th inning began with Kelly Johnson drawing a walk and ended with Yunel Escobar blasting a home run off the top of the fence. Hopefully this is the type of win that can turn around a topsy-turvy season for the Bravos.
Series continues tomorrow night on the Peachtree channel. I actually have that one, thought it took me two months to find it.
John Smoltz came of the D.L. and proceeded to blow the save with pitches up in the strike zone to the heart of the Marlins' order. Down 5-4 in the bottom of the 9th, the Braves rallied for a run behind two walks, a fielder's choice and a wild pitch. That's right - no hits.
The 10th inning began with Kelly Johnson drawing a walk and ended with Yunel Escobar blasting a home run off the top of the fence. Hopefully this is the type of win that can turn around a topsy-turvy season for the Bravos.
Series continues tomorrow night on the Peachtree channel. I actually have that one, thought it took me two months to find it.
Sunday, June 1, 2008
Reds Sweep Braves
After the 8-3 homestand, I had high hopes the Braves could overcome their road woes in Milwaukee and Cincinnati, but instead they come home losing five of six, six of their last eight. The bats cooled off, the pitcher's fingers blistered and the defense bungled outs in a miserable weekend.
The Reds, to their credit, are playing excellent, inspired baseball right now. Jay Bruce, the former Chattanooga Lookout, has given a shot in the rear to the struggling Reds. I cannot remember a debut as impressive as Bruce's this weekend. If Cincinnati can hit, they have pretty good starting pitching (ERA leader Volquez, stud Harang, solid Arroyo, sometimes brilliant Cueto). They are stuck in the tough N.L. Central, but there is no reason the Reds shouldn't be better than they have been.
But who cares about the Reds?
The Braves have been awful this week because of a line-up that is not producing runs. Yunel Escobar has been a disaster as a lead-off hitter (take a pitch!). It is time to change things up with the line-up, specifically moving Gregor Blanco to the lead-off spot. Other than that, the Braves just need to get some hits. This line-up is too good not to be scoring runs.
The injuries continue to pile up as Tim Hudson and Blaine Boyer both left yesterday's game in the 7th inning with hamstring and knee issues, respectively. The Braves have had more causalities this year than the opening scene of Saving Private Ryan.
In better injury news, John Smoltz returns to the team today likely in a bullpen role. The Braves host the Florida Marlins in a big series for Atlanta. The team has to keep winning at home until it can figure out how to do it on the road.
The Reds, to their credit, are playing excellent, inspired baseball right now. Jay Bruce, the former Chattanooga Lookout, has given a shot in the rear to the struggling Reds. I cannot remember a debut as impressive as Bruce's this weekend. If Cincinnati can hit, they have pretty good starting pitching (ERA leader Volquez, stud Harang, solid Arroyo, sometimes brilliant Cueto). They are stuck in the tough N.L. Central, but there is no reason the Reds shouldn't be better than they have been.
But who cares about the Reds?
The Braves have been awful this week because of a line-up that is not producing runs. Yunel Escobar has been a disaster as a lead-off hitter (take a pitch!). It is time to change things up with the line-up, specifically moving Gregor Blanco to the lead-off spot. Other than that, the Braves just need to get some hits. This line-up is too good not to be scoring runs.
The injuries continue to pile up as Tim Hudson and Blaine Boyer both left yesterday's game in the 7th inning with hamstring and knee issues, respectively. The Braves have had more causalities this year than the opening scene of Saving Private Ryan.
In better injury news, John Smoltz returns to the team today likely in a bullpen role. The Braves host the Florida Marlins in a big series for Atlanta. The team has to keep winning at home until it can figure out how to do it on the road.
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