The Weasel has Gone

Bobby "The Brain" Heenan passed away today at age 73 from cancer. Most people consider him the best manager of all time for professional wrestling. He fought the disease for a long while. I got to shake the man's hand back in 80's after attending a wrestling show. Thank You for all the enjoyment you brought to me watching pro wrestling and the humor you brought with it. You will be missed, weasel.

Here are just a couple of The Brain's quotes from the past.

Last time I saw Tugboat... Typhoon... Buffoon, whatever he is, run that fast is when they opened up a lunch line at the free buffet

He hit him so hard he knocked three zits off his cheek!

"A friend in need is a pest."

"You know they say money can't buy happiness. Give me 50 bucks and watch me smile"

"Its the women in Cleveland, they all look like the Undertaker"

Let us Stop Complaining About Our Teams

All you have to do is watch this video and realize that your team isn't as bad as Cleveland.

And I want that payment plan.

The Cleveland Browns Did The Right Thing By Trading The #2 Pick

R.J. and I make fun of the Cleveland Browns on the forums of the BoSox Tavern Blog. We both seem to realize that the team has made some real bad decisions since coming back to the league (Tim Couch, Johnny Manziel, Trent Richardson, Courtney Brown, and Braylon Edwards just to name a few). Those names don't include the revolving door at G.M., Coach, President of Football Operations, Popcorn Vendors, Cheerleaders, and anybody else associated with this franchise. But this new regime that has been assembled since January has made a smart move by trading the #2 Pick in the 2016 draft to Philadelphia. Let's examine why.

1. Let's say that Carson Wentz has a Hall of Fame career. And he would have been the Browns pick at #2. It doesn't matter. Why? The Browns don't have the support staff on the field to make this happen. At best, Cleveland is 3 years away from considering a playoff run because of the lack of talent on the team. Can you see the team putting in a rookie Quarterback with an Offensive Line that is inadequate at best? As we have seen time and time again with this team, the Quarterback will eventually start shucking and ducking. (See David Carr in Houston to see the prime example of this). We know that RG III isn't a long term answer. He doesn't have the escapability that he had in his Rookie year. His ability to get injured does not bode well for playing all 16 games. Josh McCown? Same with injuries. So you bring in Wentz and there is no O-Line to keep him upright, you might as well start identifying your next QB three years from now. You know that he will get hit time and time again. A QB is only as good as his Offensive Line makes him. And there is a lack of an Offensive Line in Cleveland.

2. Hue Jackson. Hue has his man in RG III. I am going to assume that he was the one that convinced Upper Management that he can rehabilitate Griffin. He is known as a coach that can get the most out of his QB's. I trust the Head Coach to know what he wants to do with the team. RG III is a bargain if he regains what made him special in his rookie year. I don't think he can, but who am I to argue with Hue?

3. The picks acquired. While only getting a 3rd and 4th round pick this year, the #1 in 2017 and #2 in 2018 are the real value picks here. The Browns got those picks while going back 6 spots in the 2016 draft that they are not convinced has a Franchise QB available to them. So you get an unsexy pick at #8 like a DE or a LT (And yes I know they have Joe Thomas. That will come into play later in this post). It improves the team and brings in more new blood of players that are highly thought of. If the scouting department does it's job, we can see talent starting to accumulate in Cleveland.

4. Setting realistic expectations of the Cleveland fans. Each and every year, we hear Browns fans telling us that the team will surprise us by making the playoffs and showing why they have faith. Well, now they can face the cold hard reality that the team needs to rebuild everything. There should be nobody safe from being cut or traded. And this leads us into #5 which will anger Browns fans.

5. Trade Joe Thomas. Right now, this is the guy that you can truthfully say is the best player on the team. He is 31 years old. He is a valuable commodity for many teams. Now is the time to trade him. You can get at least another 1st Round pick if not more for him in a trade. Here is what I do if I am in the Cleveland Brass. I let word leak that Joe Thomas is available for the right price. I ask for a 1st Rounder in 2016 or 17. Also included is a 3rd or 4th rounder in 2017. And here is the key, a developmental QB that the team likes. That way, you add more pieces that are highly thought of, you get that mid round pick that makes teams good if they can find starters there and you possibly have your QB for the next 10 years if the developmental QB develops like you want while watching the game from the sidelines for a year or two.

The new and shiny QBs come out each and every year. And you can always grab one if you want. You know the price, but the Browns have the worst roster in the league and the past couple of drafts haven't satisfied anybody. The talent level needs to be improved in all facets of the team. A rookie QB will not do it for this franchise. Getting the picks they did from Philadelphia and the picks and possible parts from a Joe Thomas trade will allow the talent level to rise. And from that point, we will see if the Moneyball Gang for Football can get this franchise up off the floor (no, not laying right beside a passed out Johnny Manziel). Because right now, this team is the laughingstock of the league.

Nuff Said

We might need the other hand next year!

Sick of Pete Rose

Just a little rant I posted to FB earlier.  I've been sick and tired of him long before this recent uptick in the need to feel sorry for/talk about him at all.  As long as Shoeless Joe stays out, keep Pete out.  Never liked the guy, even before the gambling stuff.

Can we please, please stop talking about that asshole Pete Rose?! Yeah, he's one of the all-time greats but he also bet on baseball, worst yet his own team and he's always been a walking, talking prick. I get near vomitous every time they start talking about him.

I know I'm now talking about him.  I don't care to debate, just wanted to vent.  Plus I just remembered I need to finalize this week's pick 'em and then do a quicky about my trip to Houston.

Perspective

This is in response to RJ's Tweet to me regarding a letter a Patriots fan wrote, who very articulately explains why he's quitting the NFL.

RJ and I have had similar conversation in the past regarding boycotts.  I may be wrong about this but this is how I still feel.  I feel that despite who legally owns the franchises, which obviously gives them the right to do whatever they want, including moving, I feel as if they are our franchises...that the owners are merely placeholders.  Granted, this is the perspective of a lifelong fan of New England pro sports (you will have to remember that it hasn't always been roses like the last 15 years) where you're brought up to love and follow these teams, in fact you feel like you inherit a part ownership of them.  The Patriots didn't move to Hartford or St Louis in the early 90s and no franchise has left Boston since the Braves.

Is it actually going to hurt or even get noticed by these owners if you boycott?  Why the hell should I boycott "my" team?  There's a helluva lot more chance being heard if you stay engaged than go away.

I agree with author of the above piece on many, many points; and I suspect that Bob Kraft paying more attention to his bottom line and not being willing to cut his own throat to fight Goodell in the end, is probably the breaking point for that fan.  I know I too was disappointed.  I figured Kraft, who's arguably the most respected owner in the league and who also owns its current most successful franchise, could find a way to put Goodell's feet to the fire over this debacle without having to go to court.

The author of this letter of frustration ends by saying that he feels freed.  This is where I bring back perspective.  Despite the fact that I feel these are my teams, I've never lost sight of the fact that this is sports.  Maybe the author isn't old enough to remember '86 in particular.  I lived through that and my life went on regardless.  So while I feel pro sports owners should be held accountable as caretakers of our franchises, I also feel equally strong that we have to keep in perspective what's truly important.  I look forward to sports nearly every day and it is a huge part of the passions of my life but the world does not begin and end with them.

Another Crybaby About NFL Pay

Odell Beckham Jr. Says NFL Players Should Get Paid More Because Of Game's Inherent Violence

 

Come work a job in the real world. Or better yet, grab a weapon, joined the armed forces and defend this country. Then come back from an overseas deployment where American Armed Forces personnel have been killed and tell us that football players deserve to be paid more than those that have defended our country. Just another person who does not know how good they have it.

  

Thoughts from the Weekend

Figured that we needed something on the blog, so let's try something new. Just some takes from the past weekend in sports (maybe something else at the end).

1. Tony Stewart needs to see a shrink. He goes up the track during the race, runs into Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s car and takes himself out of the race at Richmond and then blames Junior for the wreck. Here would be my plan for Mr. Stewart to get back to being a threat to win a race each and every NASCAR season:  1) Spend some of your millions on a shrink to help you with the bad memories that you have over the past 2 years. 2) Take some of that money and join a gym. The excess fat around the stomach probably ain't helping with the driving. 3) Let your business partner Mr. Haas take some of the leadership for the team. You have way too many irons in the fire. Eldora, Driving, leading the Corporation, and other things that I don't know about. You have spread yourself too thin. 4) Finally, stop being a cantankerous a-hole. Enjoy yourself and let yourself enjoy life. That might help relieve some of the pressure of your life right now.

2. Adam Wainright, St. Louis Cardinals pitcher hurt himself while batting this weekend and might be out for the year. That has national sports writers calling for the National League to institute the Designated Hitter. I strongly disagree. I would stop inter-league play. No more American League vs. National League. It causes the World Series to become just another series. I would have the American League end the Designated Hitter rule. I like the strategy that having the Pitcher hit. I also like the way that National League teams pace their games. If the NL implements the DH, I have worries that Dodgers-Giants, Cardinals-Cubs and Mets-Phillies will become 4 hours marathons like the Red Sox-Yankees. That is not good.

3. The officials in the playoffs need to be held to some sort of standard. In Game 6 of  the NHL Eastern Playoff game of Montreal-Ottawa, a referee whistled a play dead and negated a good Ottawa goal. The game was 1-0 until an empty net goal by the Canadiens with 0.7 seconds left made the final 2-0. The Senators were eliminated from the playoffs by that call. In the NBA, we have a separated shoulder for Kevin Love because a Celtic yanked and put wieght on Love's extended arm. and then we get a slap to the face of Jae Crowder by Kendrick Perkins and then a nice spinning back fist by J.R. Smith to Crowder's face. And all we hear is how the players were being overly physical in both sports. Well, who allowed it to get that way? The officials, that is who. When you have P.K. Subban trying to run a guy's face into the goalpost and nothing is done to him by either the league or the officials assigned to that game, you have problems.

4. Thank god that the NFL draft is this weekend. I am so tired of the hype. It needs to go back to the early part of April. I do not need someone giving me 14 mock drafts over 3 months. And I am tired of hearing about all the prospects. However, I am thinking about disowning the Buccaneers when they draft Jameis Winston.

5. Finally, something off of sports. We need a law or a constitutional amendment stating that there can be no political advertisments, political campaigns or announcing for political offices until January 1st of the year that the elections are being held. I am already tired of hearing about the 2016 elections. They are 19 months away. Right now, I don't want to hear anything about how this person took money for political favors, especially if there is no proof.

Everything Is Awesome In Maple Leafs Country? Really!

It is Legos and Hockey. A Match made in heaven. Now if the Maple Leafs could figure out how personnel on the ice is important, they might have something.

University of Jamestown Pride

Proud of my alma mater. Compare this to Bobby Petrino at Louisville.

http://www.myfoxtwincities.com/clip/11108236/coon-rapids-football-center-signs-as-student-coach

Sorry, couldn't get the video to embed.

Pats Humor

And go fuck yourselves wicked hard!

RIP Stu

You won't need me to tell you what kind of sports anchor Stuart Scott was or what effect he had on his chosen profession...ESPN has that covered in spades.  Instead I want to take this opportunity to encourage you to see for the first time or see again his acceptance speech at the ESPYs this summer, having been given the perseverance reward by the Jimmy V Foundation.
Stuart Scott last his long battle with cancer this morning at the age of 49.  Think of the two young daughters he left behind and live your life like there is no tomorrow because it is certainly possible.

This speech in my opinion is right up there with Jim Valvano's legendary speech:

14 Games Is Way Too Little For Trevor Gillies

Trevor Gillies Acting Like A Goon!

The AHL had a chance to make a statement for player safety with Trevor Gillies here. And the AHL has failed. You have concussion research that shows that hockey players face the same problems that football players have in later life and yet you let this Gorilla slam a kid's head into the ice after the kid has no desire to fight. I am sure that since this is the first game for the kid as a pro, that it is an attention getter, but it isn't the attention that hockey wants or needs. And if you look at Gillies history, this is a minor goon move for a person of his stature.

The Adirondack Flames have a chance here to correct their mistake of signing Gillies. They should cut his ass after he serves his 14 game suspension. I know that won't happen. Hell, you will probably have Brian Burke promote his ass up to Calgary just because Burke likes tough guys. This guy has had suspensions all throughout his career and it doesn't deter him. And his apology isn't worth the breath wasted on it.

If I am the Senior VP of Player Safety, Stephane Quintal, I am calling Calgary and telling them that Trevor Gillies will not make it to Calgary to play for the Flames. I would have him suspended indefinitely from the league and have a show-cause hearing for any team that wants to bring him in to their roster.  And then if the team doesn't take the hint and actually goes through with the hearing, then ensure that if Gillies decides to go goon again, it isn't only his ass in a sling, but the Coach, GM, and owner. Suspensions and fines would be spelled out.

Hockey has evolved from the Blood and Guts days of the 70's and early 80's. Gillies is a throwback to those times and doesn't fit into what hockey needs to be today. The NHL needs to keep him out of the top league in North America and work with the AHL and the minor leagues to ensure that they understand what the NHL is looking for in on-ice conduct.

Repurposing Baltimore Ravens Jerseys

One family came up with a way to still wear the #27 Jerseys of the Baltimore Ravens. Maybe a little bit hokey, but I do believe it does wear well.

This came from the Baltimore Sun twitter page. It is a way to get small kids to keep their jerseys and do a little craft project with them. And it might allow you to talk to them about current events.

Boycott the NFL?

Let me start out by saying that I'm the type of person who believes your employer has no business being involved in your personal life and taking action against you for something that took place outside the workplace.  For instance, I'm against the now-all-too-common piss test -- and background checks for that matter -- with the exception of people who drive for a living.  Unless you're a public person, your personal life has nothing to do with your employer.
I also want to say that we should at least recognize that our prying eyes in to Ray Rice's fiancé's private life is an unfortunate side effect of all this and she really is entitled to her privacy.  This is why I have not and will not watch that video.
Now with that out of the way, let's remember that the NFL is very much a public industry and that we, the fans, pay the bills; and therefore, we have every right to want to spend money on a league with integrity (let's not forget that word) and who oversees a product and administers that product in a way that we can feel good about.
Domestic violence is still out of control in this country.  I use the word still because no one should fool themselves into thinking that it hasn't always been there.  Fortunately, at least, these days it is something that the public cares more about than in the past.  I know I'm not the only fan of American sports who would like to see these leagues make an enormous effort to get out front of this issue and try to help eliminate (too much to ask, I know) it from our society.
So while I'm not fond of big brother (read American businesses) knowing everything I do and judging everything I do, I am very much for the NFL and other leagues taking the stance that they will not support its employees in any way, shape or form who commit domestic violence. 
Now don't get me wrong, I'm not supporting what the NFL has done thus far in the Ray Rice case.  All they've done, everything they've done, has been PR.  The league office knew full well this much if nothing else:  That if Ray Rice pulled his unconscious fiancé out of an elevator by her hair  -- and they knew from testimony that he hit her to create her unconsciousness -- then they knew without seeing the video that he knocked her out.  What the hell comes to your mind when you hear that a woman was hit and became unconscious, and you've seen video of her assailant pulling her unconscious body out of an elevator by her hair with seemingly no emotion at all?  You don't need to see the act to know what it was -- it was a very violent punch to the face.
So now the NFL is finding itself having to backstep, tread water, cover up messes from its bullshit stance that they didn't see, couldn't see, didn't and couldn't have access to see this video.  So fucking what, frankly?!
I want to see this country wake up regarding this epidemic and how lightly we still take it.  I have a personal history in this subject and I'll leave it at that.  So I think I will join my friend RJ and boycott the NFL this weekend and I ask you to do the same.  Maybe, just maybe, we can make them feel it where it hurts (in the wallet) just enough to take a much stronger stance on this issue going forward.  And oh yeah, my team's owner has publicly been out supporting Goodell's actions to this point and Bob Kraft should know better.  Being a human being sometimes has to take precedence over being a business owner.  The bottom line doesn't always have to equal the financial bottom line.
I apologize for the rambling nature of this piece and I'm sure there's holes in it because I tend to write a stream of consciousness.   And to RJ, I wrote this post before I read yours, so that my thoughts were entirely my own.  Now off to read yours.

Giving The NFL The Ray Rice Treatment

Let’s get a few things thing clear. What Ray Rice did to his now-wife was horrible. Janay Rice marrying her abuser, and then defending him by blaming the media is inexplicable. What the authorities did in “sentencing” Rice was shocking. But I’m not here to discuss that. This time I’m here to call out the NFL for its cowardice.

How can Commissioner Roger Goodell say with a straight face to CBS’s Norah O’Donnell that the NFL investigators could not get a copy of the same videotape TMZ released on Monday? The same videotape sources told the likes of Adam Scheffler and Peter King existed two months earlier?

What Ray Rice did should be punishable to the fullest extent of the law, but what the NFL and the Baltimore Ravens did is just as bad. By covering their asses and offering lame excuses for their “investigation” into the matter, they have irreparably tarnished The Shield.

To me, the NFL’s actions tell women that they don’t matter. That the league’s ability to generate revenue trumps their safety. That anything can be swept under the rug unless there’s unimpeachable evidence to the contrary. What a crock of shit. No one should ever be made to feel that way.

I’m here to tell the NFL and anyone else reading this blog that I’ll to do my part in doing to the NFL what Ray Rice did to his wife. I’m boycotting the league. I will not spend another dime on NFL merchandise. I will not wear clothing or accessories bearing an NFL team’s name. I won’t even acknowledge I’m a fan of any NFL team until Commissioner Goodell resigns.

Is this extreme? Not as extreme as what Ray Rice did. The NFL needs to get their house in order, and they can start by making the person in charge of the league held accountable for this culture of greed over all else that they created.

In Memoriam: Tony Gwynn

I’m still in shock that Mr. Padre – Mr. San Diego as far as I’m concerned – is gone. Tony Gwynn, the best player the San Diego Padres ever had, died yesterday after a long battle with cancer of the salivary gland. He was 54 years old.

Losing Tony so young hasn’t just been devastating for me, but for everyone that calls the San Diego area home as well as those who once lived here. We didn’t lose the face of the local MLB franchise. We lost an icon.

Tony was the best hitter in my lifetime, and I was around when Rod Carew, Pete Rose and Bill Madlock were the dominant hitters in their eras. But Gwynn was much more than that. Tony became the pillar of our community. He gave his time and money to local charities, did local advertising for businesses, and made many appearances on television and radio to talk baseball.

There are too many favorite Tony Gwynn moments to mention. There was the Captain Video nickname he picked up early in his career when it became known he used game tape to study his hitting technique and opposing pitchers. There was the time Gwynn appeared on The Jim Rome Show, back when Romey was only on radio, and he did a funny imitation of Rickey Henderson talking in the third person that made us instant fans of Rickey upon his arrival in San Diego. Who can forget the ground ball he hit to Ryne Sandberg that turned the tide in the 1984 National League Championship Series? Or that bomb he hit to right field in Yankee Stadium off David Wells in the 1998 World Series?

In an era when major league baseball stars had bodies built by performance enhancing drugs, Gwynn had one built by Betty Crocker. He gave hope to pudgy men that they too could play professional sports at a high level yet not look like the stereotypical athlete.

Or as Jim Rome has said many times over the years, “Fat guys with skill rule!”

Tony Gwynn was special. He could have left San Diego whenever his contract came up, but chose to stay even when the money offered by the Padres wasn’t as much as what he could have made in larger markets. Gwynn could have rode off quietly into the sunset when he retired after the 2001 season, but he became the head coach at San Diego State University and continued to preach baseball gospel to his students as well as fans of both the Padres and Aztecs.

San Diegans will never forget Tony Gwynn for all the wonderful things he did for our community, and we were lucky to have him.

How are you spending this Father's Day

First off, this doesn't have to be a sports related post and your comments don't have to be sports related.  I'd truly like to know how you're spending this Father's Day.  Secondly, you don't even have to be a dad to comment.
My daughters have moved on to lives of their own.  One is married with two young children and will be spending this Father's Day with her husband, the father of her children.  My youngest daughter just moved to Dayton, Ohio within the last week, taking the big leap on her life's journey.  I did get two wonderful phone calls today.

So my adopted son, Todd above, are going to be spending this Father's Day watching some sports, of course.  There is plenty to watch on this particular Father's Day but there could have been even more to watch had the Stanley Cup Finals gone more than five games.  If we had three games out of five go to overtime, with the Kings winning it all in 2OT in game 5, imagine how much fun games 6 or 7 might have been?
But today is still the U.S. Open golf tournament, which I always enjoy watching, although I'd enjoy it much more if Lefty were actually in contention.  Mixed in with watching that I will be watching the Nascar race from Michigan, where the #43 is starting 4th?  I'd take a Petty blue car in victory lane for a Father's day gift...that would be awesome.  Then every four years the World Cup happens.  So I'll be keeping an eye on that a little today since the U.S. isn't playing until tomorrow.  Too bad a good U.S. team is in the Group of Death but, hey, if you want to be the best, what better way to start than beating a couple of the best.
The Red Sox, who have been playing better of late during their roller coaster, less than good season, will be playing this afternoon.  Very few things are better on Father's Day than watching the Sox.  Then tonight is game 6 of the NBA Finals with the Spurs leading 3 games to 1.  I will peek in on that a little tonight.
I hope you all have a great Father's Day, enjoying it in whatever way you like best.

R.I.P. Malcolm Glazer

Thank you Mr. Glazer. You purchased my favorite NFL team and made them a power for the late 1990s until the mid 2000s. We won a Super Bowl with you at the helm of the team. May you rest in peace. And us Bucs fans do forgive you for purchasing that English football team that shall not be named.

The NFL Pinkiller Lawsuit

8 players have filed a new lawsuit against the NFL for giving them painkillers without telling them all the side effects that the medicine could do to them. Allegedly. Also alleged is that the team doctors gave them the medicine without a prescription and that team doctors did not take good enough care of injured players, with the most serious allegations being that the doctors allowed players to play with broken bones. The doctors knew that the bones were broken, but fed the players painkillers so they could play and did not worry about the broken bones, like Jim McMahon's neck or Keith Van Horne's leg. Allegedly.