It has been a while since my last post, but I treat writing like a joy and write when I feel and try not to make it a chore. With that written, I need to comment on a discussion Dan Patrick and Keith Olberman were discussing on their show recently. They commented that Kobe Bryant and some of the other bratty athletes cannot win, that the public will always view them with hatred. Iterating this indicates some form of feeling sorry for them, which is absurd.

The general public is without. We do not have connections or friends who are politicians or our group of friends are all CEOs. We live in the world and work to make ends meet. Some of us can afford to have vacations and some have to work two jobs to make ends meet and live check to check. If you come home from a hard days work and listen to a bit from an athlete complaining how hard it is to be them, one thing comes to mind. Try doing what we do and then say the same. Kurt Warner many times talks about his regrets leaving the grocer business. He had a future as a stockboy. Now, it can be said that money does not make you happy, but for those that have much stress related to financial feasability, we do not want to hear it.

With this in mind, and this is not a groundbreaking idea, you would believe that this would be educated or already understood with pro athletes. Then, they would take this knowledge and apply it to media interactions. But this does not take place. This is the reason for the disdain that certain athletes face. Barry Bonds, and more is heard everyday, was always privileged and never had to worry about where his food is coming from or how he would deal with a coach that was not giving him his fair chance at playing time. Does he honestly ask himself why the public liked/likes Ken Griffey, Jr. more than himself? Kobe was born from another professional athlete and lived in different places outside the US, so he experienced more of the cultural side than 95% of the norm. One last thing I must point out on this is the sourpuss Frank Thomas. Being a Sox fan I saw Frank mature as a hitter, but never did he seem to put anything out of himself. Only one year did he do this, but it was more of a campaign effort during contract time and this is as transparent as the GM's vote of confidence for a troubled manager.

 To win over the fans, put aside your ego's and understand how most people live. Understand that we work hard and one way we entertain ourselves and spend our hard earned money is to pay to see YOU work. Be grateful and appreciative. In the end, it will not matter how much money you made, but for many it will be who is revered and who is passed down to other generations. When my grandchildren ask me who played when I was younger I will have little to say about Bonds, but the people I will talk about will be character players like the great Tony Gwynn or Cal Ripken. This leads to my last point...

Many people are up in arms about Bonds and this potential for what if he passes Hank. After reading Game of Shadows, I became convinced of his efforts to improve his abilities through chemicals. I became eased by an excellent point by Peter Gammons, which is that there is no need to place an asterisk. Records only matter if people respect and honor what is done and celebrate it. The effort itself means nothing without the acknowledgement, at least for these situations. We hold the power as fans of the game of baseball to not acknowledge his effort. How would he react if he were to hear not boos after 756, but hear nothing but the vendors in the stands screaming for their next paying customer.

So fans of the game, rest easy. We do hold the power. Look the other way and see the greatness that is present when Craig Counsell fights off a tough pitch for a bloop single or Carl Crawford goes from first to third on a basehit. 

The original intent of this blog was to discredit Sosa by showing how his numbers were different than other great players of the past. The key to prove this would be researching his HR output in the latter years of his career. My interest comes from an article on ESPN written on the comparison of the careers of Plameiro and WIll Clark.

What you would expect to see was a spike in power late in his career. It is true that his huge power numbers came between the ages of 29-34, which is actually reasonable. It was during that time that the Andro-gate questioning took place. Sosa was not linked to that, but it was something fellow slugger Mark McGwire had in his locker, and at that time it was legal in baseball. His numbers after 33 are good, but a slight downturn. This actually makes sense with what the normal body would experience after playing a professional sport for those years.

As stated, the key to proving cheating, although it would be circumstantial, would be to see drastic differences between Sosa and his peers. Using names of great players that popped in my head such as Jimmie Foxx, Mike Schmidt, Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Babe Ruth and a few others I saw a reasonable trend. What was interesting was that the numbers of Sosa WERE comparable to these greats who were not accused of juicing. They all continued to have great numbers in their mid-thirties. Typically, their mid-thirities numbers were never their career high water mark for power, except one.

It is not shocking to find the one whose stats stand out. It is like the game played on children's television. One of these things is not like the other, one of these things is not the same. Only Barry Bonds had a career high in his mid-thirites, actually thirty six to be exact. Now it is your decision to make on the ballplayer, but my opinion is made.

To close out Sosa's legacy, which seems to be complete with his refusal to play for 500,000 non-guaranteed, is to consider why he has acted in the manner shown. Sammy always played the role of the happy guy and the clown. He loved the camera. Hey, he left right field in the middle o####ame to do some chest-bumping #### with an opponent after breaking a record. When things started to go wrong for Sammy, why is it a shock regarding his behavior? How will Sammy be remembered? For me, he will always be a guy who came up with the Sox (I know he was a Ranger before that) that had speed, but somehow completely changed his approach to the game after the trade to the Cubs and lost all fundamentals in search of the almighty dollar via the longball. Well, he found it, but was it worth it?

This is not necessarily a sports post, but due to the sports references in the movies it shall pass. I wanted to write about this topic, so it must fit and that's all she wrote.

In general conversation among men who are between their younger twenties to forties, I believe there are a few generalizations that we should all be able to assume in movie knowledge. To add humor to the information, most people will use a movie quote in place of straight dialogue. Here is the list of movies and a few examples that we should be able to assume.

I have my rule regarding the golden era of movies (only relates to me, which indicates my area of influence). The movies that were filmed between 1979 - 1986 include many things that will never be touched. Most all of the following films came out in this period. 

Caddyshack is the best comedy ever. Nothing to discuss. Most known line must be 'So I got that going for me, which is nice." Also, the "Noonan, miss" statement is often used when trying to kinx others in a sporting event. Especially useful for free throws or field goals. The point with Caddyshack is that everything is fair game. There is nothing obscure about a Caddyshack reference. If you work with people who have no recognition of this movie, it is your duty to educate them. If they are unwilling, use of force is allowed. If necessary, get Chuck Norris involved. (Before the recent ChuckNorrisFacts.com site became popular, how did they choose him for the crucial third judge in Dodgeball? Great casting.)

 The second best of all time is Fletch due to the performance by Chevy Chase. After reading this, are you a bit pekid? Need to throw up? It is line after line by Fletch. In day to day activities, Fletch offers the most usable quotes of any movie. Hey, my problems may be solved, it look's like I just won a million dollars. Irwin Fletcher, you choose. Damn, I lost. The thing is you cannot lose by watching this one.

Vacation is another staple. Do you know anyone who can state the whole piece that Clark receives from his helpful St. Louis tourist guide, who happens to be vacationing from the west side of Chicago? Vacation does not contain as many useful quotes as Caddyshack, but they are unique and humorous. In their collection people should be aware of the Family Truckster, Asteroids, the Wally World experience, and the Sherrif's local practices.

Some people may have let Strange Brew slip through the cracks. It is a little bit obscure depending on how old you are and if you are into hockey. If you are into hockey and are Canadian and you have not seen or heard of this, then there is nothing to be said for you. In consolation, I will offer you my last doughnut, its a jelly. Strange Brew also offers the whole hosehead/hoser/knob assortment as well as references to the loony bin ongoings or for official reference Royal Canadian Institute for the Mentally Insane.

Something I was not completely up on until three years ago is another staple from this era and that is Spinal Tap. References to "these go to eleven" and "How much more black could this be" should not require explanation. If you have seen Spinal Tap, but have not listened to the director's commentary you are missing out since this is just like having an additional movie. Spinal Tap does not have much for typical dialogue replacement, but bizarre lines to create a laugh are top notch.

There are many, but I need to note an underated movie, Weird Science. With lines like "Maybe she's into malatkas Dino" and "Anyone who has their hair cut like that has to be an ####", this movie is deserving of some respect. Anyone who knows Weird Science is aware of the initial bar scene and its lines. (On the telephone?) If you are not up on your Weird Science, it looks like you have some homework.

You could keep adding to the list, but I wanted to write about a list of movies that should be understood after encountering sheltered people who were unaware of the greatness but were movie quoters by nature. If you are unfamaliar with any in this list, make sure to see these. Also, you can check my movie page at http://www.eDirtbags.net/wally/movies.php.>

Lastly, I like baseball. (offical MLB qualifier)

I don't think Roger is considering the fantasy implications of this decision. I say this as a joke, but I do not recall something like this happening in a while to fantasy sports. For those of you in keeper leagues with Roger Clemens on your previous year's roster, you have to be hoping he makes a decision soon regarding his intentions for the coming year.

It is rare that a person at his age close to retirment is at the top of his position. Clemens is a top tier starter and he can turn a good pitching staff into a great team. This is all true if he plays. If you have an early draft, do you give him a spot? Let it all ride, c'mon 7!!!

In other baseball related items, will Javier Vazquez return to his pre-Yankee form? Is that player still left? His numbers show that he has reduced his walks while improving strikeouts the last three years, which is a good trend. The only downside is his increase in HR, but this may be due to the park he played in last year, Arizona. Since I am a Sox fan I am hoping for the best.

Also, what is a realistic expectation for Curt Schilling this year? He is getting long in the tooth and is a 12-10 record with 140 strikeouts what you should expect? What you always hear about is the throwing problems and breaking balls and good form. Two guys that I think of when it comes to pitchers doing things the right way are Schilling and Mark Prior. Schilling has always been known to pitch mostly fastballs which has saved his arm. Prior has always been mentioned as a pitcher with excellent form. This is even more emphasized in this town as a way to promote form reconstruction with Kerry Wood. Neither Schilling or Wood have had the typical arm problems that is known to pitchers, but both have had serious injuries to the lower extremeties. Is there a connection?

More baseball thoughts to come as I get ready for the best season.
 

This is being written in response to an article posted under the headlines area of ESPN.com. What ESPN.com has become is a master of reporting on the way in which news is being reported and reporting while disclaimering all comments, which somehow justifies all things mentioned thereafter, with the word alleged.

If anyone has ever seen All the President's Men  you are sure to be aware what a non-denial denial is, but for those that are out of the loop on this movie I will educate you. Woodward and Bernstein (in the movie) ask for someone to speak up if something is not true that they are asking about. Due to reluctance to say anything, they gain much information through somewhat suspect investigation tactics. In the end it turns out to be the only way to get to the bottom of something that ran that high up the chain of command.

Now this morning on Mike and Mike they were discussing the Tochett gambling ring investigation. What is completely wrong about this is that according to them it is now newsworthy because Gretzky, due to his wife, is involved. If their interest was to report on the facts of the story, ESPN and its radio programs could have reported on this yesterday, but due to the name value it is now worth talking multiple segments.

Finally, I want to know why this is news about what Derek Jeter thinks about Roger Clemens and the likelihood of his return. I am sure pages of headlines could be created by the east coast biased network about all of Derek's thoughts. Hot off the press: Derek Jeter thinks that Mariah Carey could lose some weight. Derek Jeter thinks Led Zeppelin III is an underrated album.

Maybe it is because I am from the Chicago area, but I have had enough of Derek Jeter. If only Jason Giambi would have slid into home, we could have avoided the sainthood of St. Derek of the Bronx.

I need to vent on something I heard while driving home from the train station on Wednesday. I was listening to the Bulls pregame, which is hosted by the OG, Mike Ogulnick. In discussing ways to improve the team, Wennington pointed out that Paxson will only make a deal that he feels will help his team. This is a good place to start. Isiah missed out on that one though.

 They got around to talking about Ben Gordon, mentioning he is a shorter player. Now why does this continue to be an issue. This is the same kind of combine garbage thinking that got the Bears one Alonzo Spellman. Can the person play at the professional level? Ben has answered that question, yet that was the first thing they had to say about him, he is short. So the OG states "Well if you can trade Ben Gordon, a 6'2" SG, for a 6'7" guard you have to do it". No person was stated, but the general idea of a taller guard. I'm 6'6" and I can play the 2, so should they give me a ten day contract to replace Ben?

I do not understand what else people expect out of Ben. He is a good scorer and shooter and shows hussle on the defensive end of the court. It was he who made it possible last year for the Bulls to be in the position they were in. He deserves a little more respect than he is given.

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 Oh, and since the recent smoketheblowfish post, I figured I would put up my mug, not that it is a work of art, but it is me.

In this corner, weighing at 8 bits and hailing from the NES era,  Tecmo Bowl. And his opponent weighing in at 16 bits and from the Genesis era, it is Maddden 92.

Now you've been given instructions in your dressing rooms. Let's keep it clean. When I tell you to go to your corner, do as instructed. The three knockdown rule is in effect.

Let's breakdown these two fighters before we go to our match today.

... 

Tecmo Bowl brought to the table the first legitimate football game for any gaming system. I started with an intellivision and the football was good there and 10 yard fight was an improvement in graphics only. Tecmo Bowl introduced a season mode which was possible through a code to continue. They did not offer all teams, but the teams represented had actual players names and abilities. The gameplay was excellent and the games were short. Either playing the computer or against another player, the games were challenging initially. The great thing about Tecmo Bowl was there was no clear cut way to win. There are many great tricks that I remember and dominant players, but I will first let people respond with their memories before I put my two cents in on that topic.

Madden '92 was a breakthrough in video game play. The introduction of the passing windows and passing game in general was a huge improvement. Madden '92 featured all the teams and allowed a tournament mode. Let's let John explain for himself "Hey, I mean this game was the best BAM! I believe that it was the best John Madden endorsed football game that was released in 1991" Well John maybe isn't the best person to describe this, but that is no shock. Madden '92 did not have the players names, that did not come until 1996, but it did have the players numbers and real abilities. Again, I will let you throw out some of your favorite oddities or tricks about this one as well, but it had some of the most unusual sound clips in any football game.

 The reason I chose these two games is that they both knew how to balance graphics and gameplay, something that has been lost in the more recent games. Both Madden '92 and Tecmo Bowl offered the ability to have a running game, something that is key to the game of football but lost in more recent games due to the power of big play passing. The run game was possible because they made it possible to shed tackles in their own way, the Tecmo game offered the runner the ability to struggle with the defender. Madden offered the spin technique to shed tacklers.

 I am interested to hear what people thought about these games and video game football in general.

I originally wanted to write about the Super Bowl hype, but that will be saved for another day. Something needs to be said about the job the Blackhawks organ-I-zation is doing. They are a complete disaster, being only ahead of the lowly St. Louis Blues. There are two points to address. The first is how can a team with this much potential for interest be this bad and also how their current state has actually created a safety net.

 The Blackhawks have a fan base that spans North America. During telecasts of road games, there are always fans visible with the Hawks jerseys supporting the team. They are an original six franchise which had a large following. They had Bobby Hull, Stan Mikita, and in my era Larmer, Wilson, Chelios, Belfour and Roenick. The city loved this team, but I must use the past tense here. The Wirtz family has taken this situation and run it into the ground. With their need to raise ticket prices and still blackout home games, they have alienated once loyal fans. The Blackhawks have even been outdrawn by the minor league team, the Chicago Wolves. Does there come a time where the league must step in due to how poor things are being done? I felt the way to get an answer was to no longer pay money to the Wirtz family for attendance in hopes that it will not be as profitable. My work alone cannot change anything, but recent history has shown it is not just me who is no longer attending games. If it does begin to be a break-even business, the Wirtz family will sell. The only question is will the next owner care about winning?

The current state is disinterest. Just this morning I realized how Dale Talon is doing in his role as GM. Fans of the team are always suspect that it is still Pully at the helm. Their free agent signings have not worked out. Khabibulin, Aucoin, Lapointe, and Barnaby have all been dissapointments. Another intesting situation happened with a young draft pick they had from 2000. Just this past week, they signed Mikhail Yakubov from his Russian team to improve the talent, even Talon acknowledged the improvement, stating "these signings definitely upgrade our skill level". The problem is they managed to place him on waivers and was claimed on the 29th by Florida. This was a swift move for their 10th overall pick from the 2000 draft. It makes it hard to develop young talent when moves like this happen. What has happened is that no one cares in town about the Blackhawks. Since there is no home games televised and sports talk radio does not involve discussions on the Hawks, the profile is low. This allows them to do a poor job, but because of the disinterest, they retain their positions because there is no scrutiny of work.

This idea ties in with the Blackhawks, so I will raise it in this same blog. Why is Chicago so accepting of mediocrity? When a team early in the season is having a good start, the talk around town is 'making the playoffs'? I am sure this sentiment is not shared by the players, but the majority of fans talk this way. The idea lost on every season is the goal to win the championship, always. The White Sox finally won a world series, a drought that was far too long. What about the Cubs, the longest without a World Series win in baseball. What about the Blackhawks, the longest without a Stanley Cup win in hockey. In order for things to turn around for these teams, we need to as a whole stop celebrating mediocrity and demanding championship calibre teams. We are the third largest market in the United States, it is time that the ownership start acting like it. If this is too much, then just sell to someone who is willing to spend to put a team that is capable of competing for the ultimate goal, the championship, not the playoffs.

It is not too long before pitchers and catchers are due to report. Being a White Sox fan, I am coming off the best season of my lifetime. What was the most painful part of the playoffs last year? Easy, listening to the broadcast of Tim McCarver.

 Corporations seem to enjoy the safety they are ensured by hiring people they know will play by their rules. What about hiring people who actually do the job. The role of the color commentator is to take those years of experience playing (which seems to be a requirement now, ex-player) and describe little known elements of why things happened or what lead to a situation. Instead, we are left with the play by play and the master of the obvious.

As a sportsfan, we have no choice in who is in the booth for the games, but the fact that McCarver continues to be trotted out for the post-season each year by Fox is a disgrace to a major network. There are websites out there lobbying to get McCarver out of the booth. When you get paid that kind of money and have that visibility, you are going to be scrutinized. That is how the media works. Now, how many years will it take to finally rid ourselves of post-season baseball with Tim McCarver? Nigel says "None. None more years"