Archive for the ‘Sports’ Category

My Astros Suggestion: The Scarlet Negative Uniform Number

Posted: February 20, 2020 by datechguy in baseball, Sports
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Before I begin let me point out that I’m already on the record as saying that sign stealing should not be illegal and that given technology it’s not worth trying to ban it. The best solution is to make it completely legal and raise the mound to give pitchers the edge.

That being said I’m in the distinct minority as the outrage over the lack of punishment for the players on the Houston Astros vs their manager, and GM and even former bench coach Alex Cora has reached the point where silent Mike Trout, arguably the best player in the game over the last five years has spoken out.

“It’s sad for baseball,” Trout said. “It’s tough. They cheated. I don’t agree with the punishments, the players not getting anything. It was a player-driven thing. It sucks, too, because guys’ careers have been affected, a lot of people lost jobs. It was tough. Me going up to the plate knowing what was coming — it would be pretty fun up there.”

“I lost some respect for some guys,” Trout said. “… All the stuff coming out, it’s tough to see.”

I must admit all I can think of when I read this is what people used to say about facing legendary fastball pitcher Walter Johnson: “You knew what was coming but so what?” but I digress.

People think that the World Series should be taken away but I disagree. The seven games were played (four of them in LA) and the results were the results. I don’t believe in rewriting history.

But I do see the point that the players who actually cheated are getting away Scott free so I have a simple suggestion.

Negative numbers.

As a punishment for their cheating I would require any player on the Houston Astros 2017 season who was on the roster prior to the September call-ups to wear a negative number on their uniform.

This has several advantages

  1. It punishes specifically the players actually involved in the scandal, not others who have joined the team later on and might get tarred.
  2. It’s a punishment that can follow a player to whatever team he is on.
  3. It provides a strong negative incentive for future players to avoid cheating in the future.
  4. It doesn’t punish the scouts or the fans or the lower levels of the organisation that had nothing to do with said scandal.
  5. It is a sanction that while embarrassing doesn’t impede a players ability to make a living. He can still be signed by anyone, play for anyone.
  6. It is an incentive for a sanctioned player to work harder. If I was made to do such a thing I’d bust my butt to put up numbers to prove that I didn’t need that edge to produce.
  7. It would actually create interest in the production of said players and thus interest in the game
  8. Finally it’s a sanction that can be lifted from individual players based on the judgement of the Commissioner’s office.

Frankly I think this is a punishment that would be a great standard punishment for those who cheat in any sport across the board.

If MLB and the players union want to get beyond this scandal I submit and suggest my solution is the best one out there.

I still think they should raise the mound anyway.

What if Brady Goes Somewhere & DOESN’T bring a Super Bowl?

Posted: February 16, 2020 by datechguy in nfl, Sports
Tags: ,

In all the “Brady to Dallas” , “Brady to LA”, “Brady to Tennessee” stuff I’ve been hearing for several months now there are a lot of factors that we hear about.

  • Do they have a solid line to protect him?
  • Do they have the offensive weapons?
  • Do they have a 2-3 year QB opening (which is all he’ll play)
  • Will they commit to the contract he wants?

All of these will be factors in the decision making process for teams and Brady but there is one factor that nobody is talking about that I suspect even Tom Brady hasn’t thought of, but should.

What happens if he goes someplace and doesn’t bring a ring or at least a Superbowl appearance?

Tom Brady has been a fixture for the Pats for 20 years. He took a team that had been to 2 Superbowls in 35 years, losing both and took them to NINE superbowls in the next twenty years winning SIX.

That being the case if Tom Brady stays in New England till he is 45 and never makes another Superbowl, while sports writers might grumble and Sports Radio might buzz, fans will still love him and when he does retire give him a send off that will be almost as memorable as his playing days.

If he leaves however everything is different.

Any franchise that signs Brady is one that feels it is near the brass ring right now and figures that it is that one piece away from going all the way, which is why they will be paying $25-$40 Million for a 42 year old QB who happens to be not only the best player of all time, the most prolific when it comes to Superbowl appearances of all time but the best clutch performer of all time in the history of the game.

Once having made that commitment, a playoff appearance won’t do, a 1st round bye with a win won’t do. Anything less than a conference championship will be considered a failure and even that if it comes with a Superbowl loss with not be enough.

And the fans who support said franchise who do not have a history with Tom Brady will not blame their line, or their coach, or their receivers or defense if this happens, they will blame HIM because he was brought in and given the key to the vault to make it happen.

Oddly enough this might actually be an incentive to Tom Brady, the ultimate competitor, who wants to win more than anyone else on the field. He’s the type that actually might want all of that on his shoulders and revel in the chance to take some lesser teams flag and charge up the hill. Perhaps he feels he needs a fanbase that will challenge him rather than one that has reached a point of unconditional love.

But my advice to Brady is this. Make damn sure that this is what you want before you leave a fanbase that loves you an owner that will cater to you and a coach and staff that knows you better than any other and is in the best position to help you continue to be a winner in the twilight of your career.

Unfinished Business Under the Fedora: The Democrats Media Masters, J-Lo and Biology, Female Doctors Everywhere, Yockey in Iowa and Mookie over LA

Posted: February 6, 2020 by datechguy in Always look at the bright side of Trump, American Success Stories, baseball, culture, elections, entertainment, News/opinion, politics, primaries, Sports, under the fedora
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Often events overtake thoughts on items so here are a few things I would have liked to have gotten out from Under My Fedora a bit earlier.

Don Surber, one of the must reads on the net notes that the media have a lot to answer for in terms of the results of impeachment and he’s right in the sense that the media kept pushing all this forward in the belief that it would hurt the president That some in the Democrat leadership and others in the field knew this to be the case was not enough to stop them.

For years I’ve thought the media was at the Democrats beck and call, now I’m wondering if it’s the other way around.

There was a lot of fuss about J-Lo’s performance at the Superbowl and the whole Pole Dancing business, I think life might be a lot easier if we all acknowledged two basic things.

Men like women and are biologically designed to desire them, the more sexually provocative they are the more noticeable they become to men’s eyes. That the actual norm, and it is the cultural restraints that our friends off the left from religion to chivalry that teaches a man to be a gentlemanly and show restraint and to respect the “no” when a woman gives it

Women are also biologically designed to rival each other for said notice of men and said biology and rivalry does not end when a woman is in her 50’s. and when you spend a lifetime making a living off the “male gaze” you certainly aren’t going to let a younger woman outdo you in that measure.

Those same civilizing impulses that acted upon men also acted upon women to be very selective when using that biological power which gives power to a women to improve a man to the point where he is a suitable mate. When our culture abandoned those civilizing tools they abandoned those restraints which ironically is what has actually objectified women.

The sooner these things facts that have centuries of experience developing the better off we will be as a society.

If you missed Doctor Who this week as I have for the last several years you would have found that the 1st female Doctor (played by Jodie Whitaker) was joined by the 1st Black Female Doctor (played by Jo Martin).

There are many issues with this development, from the rewriting of the Doctor Who Canon of fifty plus years to the fact that they will need to take a further woke step to satisfy the Social Justice Warriors whose demands can never be fully me met shall we see the 1st trans woman doctor played by Jessica Yaniv later this season perhaps?

But the issue that is biggest for the current Doctor Who franchise is that according to my oldest son who is still occasionally watching the series not only was the 1st black female Doctor (played by Jo Martin) clearly recognizable as “the doctor” in terms of tone and character unlike the 1st female doctor (played by Jodie Whitaker) to my son, a lifelong Doctor who man fan but she apparently the 1st black female Doctor (played by Jo Martin) completely out acted the 1st female Doctor (played by Jodie Whitaker) to the point where it was according to my son the wrong person was the 1st female Doctor and it wasn’t close.

Oh and for the record the 1st female doctor was in fact Joanna Lumley

FYI My apologies to the good folks at Nerdrotic for stealing his “1st female / Black female Doctor” meme.

Completely missed this tidbit from Stacy McCain concerning old friend Cynthia Yockey. Ten years ago I met the Conservative Lesbian at CPAC and she told me of how she had been rejected and marginalized by gay friend while embraced by conservatives.

Cynthia ten years later:

Speaking of conservatives, my friend Cynthia Yockey caucused for Trump last night. Yes, there was a Republican caucus in Iowa, which Trump obviously won. Cynthia reports that (a) she was drafted to be a delegate to the county GOP convention in March, (b) elected to the platform committee, (c) her plank on transgender issues was unanimously adopted, and (d) “the passionate nominating speech for Trump that opened our caucus was given by an immigrant from India who became a citizen in 2008.”

I’m very happy for Cynthia who is a fine person but I’m even happier for the Iowa GOP & the President who are damn lucky to have her.

Finally in the Midst of all this political news the Boston Red Sox have Traded Away Mookie Betts arguably next to Mike Trout the best outfielder/player in the game along with Starter David Price for a pair of young players. For myself I would have waited till May to see if we had a chance to contend but given that Betts didn’t want to resign here getting something for a guy who hits for power & average, steals bases, has a rocket arm and incredible outfield range is a lot better than getting nothing for him, not to mention the huge savings from getting rid of David Price’s contract.

As for the Dodgers I don’t care if every team in the league has a complete list of every sign you have, if you can’t win the series with the addition of Price still a good pitcher and Betts to that already formidable team you’re just never going to do it and if you can sign Mookie to a long term deal than your team might truly become a Dynasty.

Either way enjoy it, he’s a pleasure to watch.

Kobe and the media mess

Posted: February 4, 2020 by chrisharper in Sports
Tags: ,

By Christopher Harper

The coverage of Kobe Bryant’s death underlines just how bad the media have become when covering relatively simple stories.

Here are some of the problems that happened:

–Bryant’s widow Vanessa got the news from TMZ.

–ABC News national correspondent Matt Gutman reported that all of the Bryants’ children were killed.

–The BBC aired footage of LeBron James, identifying him as Bryant.

–Vox and others got the number of people killed wrong.

–Many outlets identified the deceased daughter incorrectly.

–Esquire got the number of championships he won wrong—as well as the number of points he scored in his final game.

–DaTimes misidentified the team James was playing for in March 2018. He was still with the Cleveland Cavaliers rather than the LA Lakers.

As my boss at The Associated Press told me many years ago: Get it first, but it damned well better be right.

But then there’s the worst of all. DaPost’s emphasis on Bryant being charged with rape in 2003, which never went to trial but was settled out of court in a civil case.

Felicia Sonmez, a political reporter at DaPost, tweeted a link to a story from the Daily Beast about the Bryant rape case. After a tremendous negative response, Sonmez tweeted a second time. “Any public figure is worth remembering in their totality,” she wrote. “That folks are responding with rage & threats toward me… speaks volumes about the pressure people come under to stay silent in these cases.” 

Sonmez once accused a colleague from The Los Angeles Times of sexual harassment, and he lost his job.

DaPost’s Editor Marty Baron told her to take the tweets down, which she did, and the reporter was suspended for a minute and a half until her colleagues at DaPost and elsewhere backed her up.

The paper’s union wrote an open letter to Baron and Managing Editor Tracy Grant, accusing them of failing to protect Sonmez and noting that this isn’t the first time management “has sought to control how Felicia speaks on matters of sexual violence.” More than 300 staffers signed the letter.  

DaPost retreated and reinstated Sonmez. In a statement, it said that following a “review,” it had concluded that Sonmez’s tweets were “ill-timed,” but “not in clear and direct violation of our social media policy.” Sonmez was reinstated. In a statement of her own, Sonmez said she and her colleagues deserve to hear directly from Baron.

What’s clear is DaPost and others did a dreadful job of covering a rather simple story of a helicopter crash and ramped it up into an ill-timed examination of woke values. It used to be that a reporter wasn’t supposed to be part of the story. Unfortunately, that long-held ethical value has died, too. 

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