Steroids and the Hall of Fame

The dentured, world war 2 era, and generally out-of-touch dinosaurs that comprise of the Baseball Writers' Association of America fucked over both a number of highly-deserving individuals and the game yesterday when they deemed no candidates worthy of the Hall of Fame. All time home run king Barry Bonds got only 36% out of the 75% needed. Seven time Cy Young winner Roger Clemens got only a percent more. Mike Piazza and Jeff Bagwell, both with an OPS above 900 and 867 home runs together didn't do much better. None of the previously listed tested positive for steroids. Piazza and Bagwell haven't even been linked to PED usage in any way other than word of mouth speculation. Even widely presumed-to-be-clean 3000 hit club member Craig Biggio was seemingly penalized for playing in the wrong era. Or because he wasn't "first ballot worthy" to the Mike Lupicas of the world who thinks that means anything. Players linked to steroid usage have been arbitrarily labeled "cheaters", "frauds", "dishonest" and much more by the morally grandstanding writers who conveniently ignore baseballs history of questionable integrity. The hall of fame has come out and said that players wouldn't be on the ballot if they didn't comply with clause 5 which details sportsmanship and character. Yet noted racist and all around asshole Ty Cobb has a plaque in Cooperstown. Self-admitting spit baller Gaylord perry has been immortalized. Even at the high school level; signs are stolen, infielders are intentionally cleated, lips are packed, and some even juice. But despite all that, two wrongs don't make a right. It's irrelevant because its still agregious and hypocritical  to fault and penalize these record holders and icons of the game. Let's turn back the clock to 1998. Baseball was at an all time low following the players strike and ratings and gate receipts were down. Usage of steroids and amphetamines was widespread, untested, and largely accepted within the game. Then Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa assaulted the roger Maris' 38 year old home run record, captivated a nation, and saved baseball. During the chase, reporter even suggested McGwire's previously unparalleled long ball power wasn't as wholesome and golden as it seemed. The baseball media and community tore him to shreds. Selig, MLBPA head Donald fehr and numerous others in the MLB community, even some of the same hall voters standing on their ethical high ground now swept it under the rug for the good of the game. Everyday people break rules with actions considered harmless everyday. Some of us litter, some of us smoke weed, some of us go 10 miles over the speed limit on the highway. That's right, even you BBWAA writers. Now, Lets go beyond that and put ourselves in their shoes. Say you were a player in the 90's and you had the choice. It's pretty easy to say they were cheating themselves and the rest of America from your armchair. You can stick a needle in your ass and almost magically become better at your profession leading to greater financial security, more productivity for your employer, and the feeling of knowing you have done everything you have done to perform at your highest level. Best of all, you never get caught or (as it seemed at the time) judged! Would you stick that needle in your ass or pop that greenie. If yes and you still think being "clean" should be a hall requirement then you are a sanctimonious dickhead. If no, then you are possibly Tim tebow and probably have no friends. Now lets look at the big picture, another sore on infected cock that is baseball's future. Baseball is a dying sport and it's becoming more evident thanks to stuff like this. The sport has been passed by basketball by the sacred 18-32 demographic while hockey and soccer are closing the gap faster than you think. The problem is baseball is traditional, traditional in a racist "the south will rise again" hick type of way. Tradition isn't doing stupid things because that's how they always have been and not ignoring the consequences, that's called ignorant stubbornness. The sport won't institute full replay, won't fully market individual young stars, won't allow video on YouTube, won't embrace the advanced statistics that keep intelligent fans engaged, and now won't even include some of its greatest players into its shrine of history for speculation misguided and faux virtue. Bud selig's complicit ignorance of the dilemma at hand for most of his career is as much to blame for this mess as anything so perhaps maybe he can give us some directive on the matter. After all, what would the rock & roll hall of game be without esteemed pedophile Michael Jackson or the of nfl's without OJ.

The State of Philadelphia Sports

        What a difference a few months make.  In August, the hype surrounding the Eagles and 76ers was pretty large.  The Eagles were picked by many football pundits to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl, with some choosing them to finally capture their elusive first title.  The 76ers were looked at as a threat to challenge as the number two seed in the Eastern Conference with the addition of oft-injured but talented seven-footer Andrew Bynum.  Things were looking bright.
       However, just like many things in life, both teams on paper were a lot better than on the field or court.  Rather than battle for home-field advantage against the Redskins today, the Eagles battled for a high draft pick.  Nick Foles, who has looked promising at times, missed Jeremy Maclin on a potentially game-tying touchdown and then ended the game with an intentional grounding call (yeah, its that a simple of a call Ed Hochuli.  Keep it short and simple).  At 4-11, the Eagles will almost certainly be playing their final game under Andy Reid next week at the Giants.  Come next September, its anyones guess who will be coaching and playing for the team.
        The 76ers, meanwhile, lost a game in Brooklyn today, dropping their record to 13-15.  Jrue Holiday has blossomed into a star while Evan Turner is finally showing why he was the number two pick three years ago.  However, Bynum has yet to see the court this season and fans have little hope he will play.  With his contract expiring at the end of the season, its a wonder as to whether Bynum will ever wear a 76ers uniform on the court.  As it stands now, it looks like the team will continue to be stuck in NBA purgatory: a middle-seed who may win a first-round series but has no shot of winning a championship.
       So, as the football season comes to a close and the 76ers remain mediocre, at least we can look forward to the Phillies, who look great on paper....if the paper was from 2006.

How far can the Knicks go?

The Knicks have gone under the radar somehow but Melo&Co. keep on rolling. He scored 45 tonight in their statement win over the Nets giving them a 16-5 record and the best record in the east. The perennial laughing stock is even killing the rap game these days. The squad is straight rolling and they have an undeniable swagger and edge that has been missing since the 90's. Melo's tenure with the Knicks has been controversial at best but he is having a career-year. After winning gold as the second leading scorer for the Olympic team, he has came back with a renewed commitment to defense and hustle. Paired with his always lethal half-court offensive skills, he is possibly the MVP thus far. Despite the early success, they will only get better once Shumpert and Amare' return.

Does this mean they can compete for the NBA Championship?

Yes, very much so. The east is down and Melo is up. Even without the ridiculous production they're getting from Melo, Smith, and Felton, they're still the most complete team in the east. They can't match the star power of the Miami but do have the best scorer and crunch-time player in the game and stud complimentary players in every facet. Steady point play, check Felton & Kidd. Three point shooting, check, every perimeter player they have. Lockdown D; check Chandler, Shumpert, and a suddenly-giving-a-shit Anthony. Scoring off the bench, check again, J.R. Smith is suddenly having the best season of his career after deciding it wasn't a good idea to black out every other night.  Woodson is 34-11 since taking over and clearly has created a system that fits the pieces they have and that Melo bought into like D'Antoni never could. Atlanta, Boston, Brooklyn, and Chicago aren't on a level to compete with a team this deep and talented. Therefore, expect a Miami-New York finals in the east and if they continue to personify their leader as well as they have then the Knickerbockers could very likely be just 4 great Melo performances during his career year away from a title.

Cam Cameron is Finally Fired

To the surprise of many but the disappointment of no one (barring AFC defenses), the Ravens have finally pulled the plug on offensive coordinator Cam Cameron. This is really something that should have happened at-least a year or two ago but the lockout and his relationship with Harbaugh allowed him to hold onto a job that he undeniably sucked at. Brought in five years ago with the new regime of Harbs, Flacco, and Rice; the team finally realized that an offense so talented shouldn't have been so inconsistent. An offense with the best backfield in football and a cannon-armed QB with 2 burners on the outside plus the sure handed Boldin and Dennis Pitta has NO EXCUSE to be middle-of-the-pack and as Jeckyl and Hyde as they've been. This probably comes off as a desperation move to the rest of the world, but it doesn't matter because there is nowhere to go but up based on the last 2 weeks. This is because there isn't really much to defend about Cameron and there is nothing successor Jim Caldwell can do worse. The fact that Caldwell, who took Indy from Superbowl contenders to the saggiest sacks in the league in two years is considered an upgrade tells you all you need to know about who he is replacing. Cameron should reimburse fans for all the remotes he caused to be thrown at the wall during his tenure due to the frequent abortions of offenses he trotted out. The timing of many play calls was simply bland and befuddling. The game plans, in which Rice sometimes saw under 10 carries in losses, made you vomit in your mouth. The plays themselves, which consisted exclusively of stretch runs to Rice, go's for the outside receivers, and underneath routs for the inside guys; was mastered by Flacco and hit its ceiling in his 2nd season. Rain man could've mastered that offense in a year and a half. Hopefully these last three weeks give the Ravens a chance to get their shit together and get the O clicking in time for the playoffs. Their future this year can now be summed up best by Jim Carrey in Dumb & Dumber,  "So you're telling me theres a chance." Don't let the door hit you on the way out Cam.