Ten Things I Think I Think Peter King Has Not Thought Of: Thursday Comeback Edition

There is one thing I like about blogging and that is you can always tell what your audience thinks about you. Generally if no one comments on what you write it either means it is a boring, uninspired topic or you don't have a lot of traffic yet. For us, traffic is not down...

So I get it. I understand your silence and unwillingness to opine on the boring and stupid topics I have put forth, I will do better at a later date or possibly today. I am kidding, I don't require constant coddling and feedback on my posts...though I admit it is odd how commenting has taken a recent dive, I just chalk it up to Peter King being on vacation or little anything of interest being said. Regardless, I have not done a "Ten Things" in a few weeks so let's get to it.

1. Jay Mariotti and his self important smiling picture thinks baseball is in limbo.

They booed Barack Obama and cheered the two Bushes, which is everything you need to know about this city.

They are a bunch of assholes who love war, torture, and money but hate black people. The entire city of St. Louis, you're a bunch of racists!

Maybe the city of St. Louis forgot that anyone outside of right wing nut jobs are not supposed to say anything negative about Obama...I would have thought the national media would have alerted the city of St. Louis to say only positive things. Maybe the Michael Jackson coverage got in the way of that notice St. Louis was supposed to receive.

The pre-game ceremony oozed of a Bud Selig production, a gooey attempt to gloss over the game's problems -- a five-percent attendance drop, the perception that some players still could be using performance-enhancing drugs -- and it reflected the commissioner's typically delusional belief that baseball is in a golden era.

I'm not a Bud Selig fan but to blame a 5% drop in attendance on him, and not the economy, is very ignorant of Jay. A 5% drop in attendance should be a win for baseball. Look at the trouble the NBA may be in for a couple of years. I don't know the attendance numbers for each of the sports but 5% doesn't sound too bad.

Also, baseball may not be in a golden era but there are a lot of great young players in baseball now and it gets me excited to think about. Anyone who pays attention to the game can name a few great young players. Jay is being pessimistic just to be a crotchety old man who is a contrarian.

Of course, that's why the president showed up at the All-Star Game, to honor Selig's wonderful work through 17 years of deception and greed.

Little did Selig know that Obama also was here to keep living out his sports fantasies. He flew in with Willie Mays on Air Force One. He threw out a low-diving first pitch that would have bounced had Albert Pujols not stepped up and scooped the ball before it did.

Then Obama appeared in the TV booth with Joe Buck and Tim McCarver. This was Barry from Bethesda on the ultimate sports-talk gig, which at times is all Obama seems to want from life.

Jay started the column off saying all you needed to know about the city of St. Louis is that they booed Barack Obama and then proceeds to accuse Obama of coming to the game just to fulfill childish sports fantasies. Booing him is not acceptable but throwing baseless accusations of him using his office of President to fufill his fanboy fantasies is perfectly fine. I hope Obama has Jay deported to a third world country. Why can't we live in a dictatorship just for this one reason?

It was all real nice. But baseball stopped being our national pastime about 20 years ago, replaced by all things NFL and recently one-upped even by major NBA trade movement. The world never has moved at a faster pace, yet baseball remains too slow and nostalgic.

Major League Baseball should change the sport to fast pitch baseball to speed up the game and attract more people to watch the game. That's the ticket. There can only be 3 seconds between pitches and then when a batter hits the ball he has to try and run around all of the bases without being tagged out. Oh yeah and the fielders should not be able to use gloves anymore. Let's move the pace of the game up and make it more exciting...but keep the Home Run Derby, it's so fun to watch!

What the hell does Jay really want baseball to do? In this tough economic time attendance is only down 5% and baseball has always been and always will be a relaxed and slower paced sport. No matter who the commissoner is this won't change. There are a lot of people who like baseball this way...including me.

The All-Star Game is one of his colossal failures, and not because it's the most lopsided running affair in sports. The National League seemed ready to win for the first time in 13 years, taking an early 3-2 lead.

How could you be so incredibly fucking wrong about this? The All-Star Game has been won by the American League a lot recently, but some of that is attributed to luck. The last four All-Star Games have all been decided by one run. It's not this lopsided affair that everyone wants us to believe the All Star Game is.

"The first game and possibly the seventh game at home is always a big deal. It's a big help,'' said AL manager Joe Maddon, whose Tampa Bay Rays benefited last autumn from the edge. Makes you wonder why they even play the All-Star Game, with the NL now 0-12-1 since 1996, when Obama was just beginning his political career in Illinois.

This awful homefield advantage has come into play a full zero times since this rule was instituted. Sure, it is a great advantage but it is no bigger of an advantage or more random than just rotating which league gets homefield advantage in the World Series each year. At least there is some semblance of reason behind the decision.

Selig has bigger problems with this game. There was Roy Halladay, wearing an American League glow on an All-American night, trying to help the junior circuit win the home-field edge again in the Series. Not that it occurred to anyone that this was a preposterous conflict of interest. In a few days, the Toronto pitcher might be traded to a NL team, meaning whatever fine AL deeds he performed in the All-Star Game ultimately could work against him this October in, say, Philadelphia.

It did not occur to anyone because Roy Halladay has not been traded to a National League team yet. What is he supposed to do? Not play in the game or refuse to pitch on the off chance he will be traded to the National League? This "conflict of interest" did not occur to anyone for the reason that most people just want to watch the All Star Game to be entertained and it is purposeless to assume a player will be traded to another league, so shut up and enjoy the game.

Turns out Halladay was rocked for three earned runs in the first two innings, which could lead to conspiracy theories that he was helping his future NL employer.

I am sure he was intentionally giving up runs so the completely unknown team he will get traded to in the National League will have homefield advantage in the World Series. It's a vast conspiracy.

Anyone with a brain sees major flaws in the system: (1) some of the premier players aren't here, including Ramirez and Rodriguez, diluting the talent level and making it trickier to determine which league truly is better this season;

They weren't voted in by the fans! Not to mention both of them were found to be past PED users, which probably factored in as well. Players don't get a lifetime pass to the All-Star Game. I can't believe Jay Mariotti who is a part of the "death by hanging as a punishment for PED use" crowd thinks that the game is not complete because A-Rod and Manny are not there. I don't know if this is hypocritical or just ignorant.

(4) players are pulling out of the game to serve their own ballclub's interest, such as Tampa Bay's Evan Longoria, who pulled out Tuesday with an infected right ring finger;

How dare he think about his and his team's long term future! This is an exhibition that has no relevancy to the standings of the AL East, Longoria should be playing with a broken leg and a detached retina!

This game means everything when it should not. Remember that this autumn when the Red Sox, Yankees, Rays, Twins or Angels are playing at home in the first two games of the Series.

I think as opposed to just having each league on a random rotating schedule, the All-Star Game-World Series-homefield-advantage makes more sense.

2. Red Sox Nation, I have bad news. Terence Moore doesn't think you will last.

This isn't quite baseball's Hula Hoop, but it is close. In other words, the suddenly loud and colorful explosion throughout the universe for anything involving the Boston Red Sox is a fad.

Of course, because these Red Sox fans aren't going to have children who will also end up being indoctrinated into being Red Sox fans and then those children are going to have children until there are Red Sox fans everywhere...climbing on your kitchen cabinets, you will move a plant in your house and find a cockr---Red Sox fan back there, and one night you will wake up to find a whole family of Red Sox fans in your shower. Kids are generally not fans of the same team their mother/father were fans of, that never happens.

(Bengoodfella vomits)

So Red Sox fans should enjoy all of this before it is going, going, almost gone, because it is fleeting.

Let me just give a heads up to everyone right now. You can call me a sage if you would like, but when the Cubs when a World Series this is going to be the list of most annoying bandwagon fans:

1. Chicago Cubs
2. Every other team in MLB

It's going to be bad when the Cubs when a World Series. They have that loveable loser thing not to mention Cubs fans are already really, really fucking annoying thinking every year is going to be "their year." Just wait until they start winning. It will be a disaster.

Said pitcher Tim Wakefield, with the Red Sox since 1995: "My years are blurring together, but I think all of this was a gradual thing. Once new ownership took over (in December 2001 with principle owner John W. Henry), they did a better job of marketing the team and making it more popular."

I am not here to defend Red Sox Nation, because like every other fan base there are bandwagon fans, but that's how you make a team popular. The Braves and Cubs had nationally televised games on WGN and TBS and not surprisingly they are two of the most popular teams in the United States (which doesn't explain why the Braves can't sell out their own stadium...I hate you Braves fans in Atlanta, you apathetic assholes). It's how you do it. Is part of the success in marketing based on team success? Of course.

Here are some of Terence Moore's bitter old man facts:

Prior to that, the Red Sox averaged fewer folks per season than the American League average in seven of the previous eight years. In fact, the Red Sox owned a historically sorry fanbase that left Fenway less than half full more often than not for decades after it opened in 1912.

Remember that Ted Williams ended his legendary Red Sox career with a home run in his last at-bat at Fenway? Just 10,000 folks showed up.

You have all of those Red Sox myths, though. The silly one that claims the Red Sox Nation has enjoyed longevity (see above) is perpetrated by the sillier one that claims no set of fans ever have suffered more than Red Sox fans.

I blame Dan Shaughnessy and Bill Simmons for this. Thanks guys!

The Cubs still haven't won a World Series since 1908. Not only that, since their last pennant in 1945, the Red Sox have reached the World Series six times, including four during that stretch prior to 2004 when the pain of the Red Sox Nation supposedly was so dark and unique.

Cubs fans=Red Sox fans on steroids. Trust me on this. When they win a World Series the Cubs fans will say they have suffered since the year 1793 or something.

In all seriousness, I feel bad for Red Sox fans who have to deal with the bandwagon fans. I hate bandwagon fans.

There was Bob Smith, who was standing in a box seat at Turner Field for one of the weekend games wearing two Red Sox jerseys and a T-shirt commemorating the Red Sox's World Series victory in 2004. He has been a registered nurse in Atlanta for five years, and despite his roots in Plattsburgh, N.Y., he has been a Red Sox fan for the past 33 years.

Yet the truth is, now that it's at its peak, you've got folks saying, 'I've always been a Red Sox fan.' Oh, really, I say? Who played center field for the Red Sox in '76? I can tell you that it was Fred Lynn. Ask them about Dwight Evans, or who played second back then. They couldn't tell you.

Frustrating.

It was the Yankee Nation before the Red Sox Nation, and it will be the Yankee Nation afterward.

I disagree. I think Red Sox fans are here to stay. It may not be the fervor all the time like now, but Terence Moore had better get used to it.

3. I think everyone is being unfair to Travis Henry. He's just trying to be a family man.

in March we learned that he had 11 kids by 10 women, so Henry's clearly committed to something.

You can't pay support on 11 kids with a normal day job, plus it is so hard for athletes to keep all their money when they are in the Bill Simmons 60% tax bracket (I name it that because he is the only person aware of this bracket---though it could possibly happen in the future, but we are not there yet).

Henry has been sentenced to three years in federal prison for financing a drug trafficking operation that moved cocaine between Denver and Billings

People rip him for not supporting his kids and now he is trying to support his kids and society arrests him? What kind of message is that sending? If millionaires who have kids all over the country with various women without regard can't afford to pay for these children because of a lack of money and have to turn to drug dealing, what does that say about the rest of us and our chances to make it?

4. I hate Scott Boras.

Strasburg said that "I haven't heard from the Nationals" since he was drafted, other than receiving a minor league contract -- a technicality that prevents him from becoming a free agent

Accordng to Nats' president Stan Kasten, however, acting GM Mike Rizzo has been in "frequent contact" with Scott Boras.

Someone is lying...

Which suggests either (a) that contact has been highly superficial, to the point where Boras isn't even telling Stasburg about it; or (b) there have been substantive talks and that Boras, in violation of just about any ethical rule you can think of, isn't keeping his client in the loop.

Any guesses? I think Boras is not telling Strasburg about the talks that are going on because the Nationals have not even come close to his contract demands.

I can't believe the Nationals would try and screw this up. They have to be trying to sign Strasburg...of course they are the Nationals.

If I'm running the Nats, however, I try to short circuit all of that. I pick a number which I will truly not go beyond in signing Strasburg -- no lowballing, no gamesmanship -- just a number that I can tolerate as an owner but which I will not pay a penny beyond. Then I offer it.

That sounds like a good idea. The Dodgers sort of did this with Manny and I think this is how you control Boras, or at least try to control Boras.

And if he doesn't take it? Well, in that case you can be assured that Boras will be talking through one of his favorite sock puppets all about it, publicly slamming the Nats.

That's a link to Jon Heyman of CNNSI.com and his archive. Which brings me to:

5. I went to Jon Heyman's archive and found this article. Let's see if he is a Scott Boras mouthpiece. I will just post the parts about Strasburg and you make up your mind.

But there was no talking the needy Nationals off the pitcher who's considered one of the greatest prospects of all time.

I don't want to rain on the Stasburg parade but he used to be fat and lazy, then he decided he did not want to be fat and lazy anymore. I wonder what millions of dollars in his pocket will do?

1. The Nats' concern about failing to sign Strasburg is mitigated considerably by the rule allowing them to receive a replacement pick in the same spot next year, which might mean a stacking of picks.

That's a myth. The last thing the Nats need to do is keep pushing their future another year into the future. Besides, an extra pick, even at the top, isn't going to make up for Strasburg if he's as good as everyone says he is.

The key word in that last sentence being "if." Otherwise, the Nationals would not have busted their own budget and still have two of the top picks in the 2010 draft. I know the Nationals are needy but I am big fan of making the best offer possible and letting it go from there. This is not the best way for the Nationals to build up a fan base but I would think it would make them feel a little better, if Scott Boras and Strasburg play hardball, knowing they could have two very high picks in next year's draft.

2. Scott Boras has an excellent relationship with Nats president Stan Kasten.

I doubt that's true. Boras put one over on the Braves when he somehow got them to offer arbitration to Greg Maddux, busting their budget one year.

Haha! They tricked the Braves into resigning a Hall of Fame pitcher who went 16-11 with a 3.92 ERA. Sure it busted the budget but forced them to trade a guy who went 14-12 with a 4.01 ERA and they got what turned out to be a decent catcher in return. The jokes on them for resigning a Hall of Fame pitcher!

4. The draft is just another way for Boras to make money.

Though he's made a lot of money with drafted players, that's a myth. Boras was undoubtedly pleased to nearly prove true his claim of having the best college pitcher, best college position player, best high school position player and best high school pitcher when players of his who fit those four categories were picked first (Strasburg), second (Dustin Ackley, Seattle), third (Donavan Tate, San Diego) and ninth (Jacob Turner, Detroit).

It is hard to deny the facts on this one...but don't let it stop Heyman from doing so. Boras is going to make quite a bit in signing bonuses on these guys, it may not be as good as the free market, but Boras is guaranteed a good signing bonus because teams are pressured by their fan base to sign these guys.

While Boras is said by people close to the situation to be seeking $50 million for Strasburg, as a free agent Strasburg would actually make that, and more.

Of course Heyman neglects to mention how much money Boras will make off the other three players in signing bonuses and how the free agent market would not be quite as plentiful for the other three potentially. There are only so many free agents out of college and high school the Angels, Dodgers, Red Sox, Yankees, and Mets could sign.

5. It's crazy to think Strasburg would sit out a year.

No, it's not completely crazy. Although it is something of a long shot, it can't be ruled out entirely. Strasburg is only 20, and maybe for some reason he doesn't find the Nats completely appealing. Boras has had two stars in the past who sat out seasons after being high draft choices -- J.D. Drew and Luke Hochevar -- and both of them made more money by missing the year (though baseball people would argue they missed valuable service time and experience).

Stupid baseball people, always focusing on playing baseball and not making money. It took Drew a few years to recover from this perception that he was a person who only loved money (though I am sure the Dodgers may still feel this way) and Hochevar is currently sporting a 5.00+ ERA at the age of 25 years old...but at least he has money!

That's pretty much all Heyman typed of interest about Stasburg, so I don't know if he is a Boras apologist or not. I do know I think the Nationals should not break their budget to sign Strasburg, I know they need players but in three years they will end up trading him for prospects anyway, might as well play a little hardball now at the negotiating table.

6. Andre Rison never ceases to amuse me.

The second day of his camp, though, is when Rison shows highlights of his football career, such as a Gator Bowl best 252 receiving yards against Georgia when he played at Michigan State or a 54-yard touchdown in Super Bowl XXXI as his Green Bay Packers beat New England, 35-21.

"That's when I really let them know, in my eyes, I was the best to ever play the game," Rison said.

This is what happens when ex-players become so detached from reality. They start thinking an above average NFL career makes them the best player ever to play in the NFL. Of course it could also be drugs that make him think this.

A point of emphasis, Rison said, is instructing campers not just about the slot or recruiting but about life lessons he gleaned from personal experiences that contributed to his "Bad Moon Rison" nickname.

Clearly, the personal experiences he can relate are that drugs will stay in your system for an extended period of time and contribute to delusions of grandeur or how dating Lisa Lopes at one point in your life can cause a break from reality.

7. Ross Tucker doesn't think it is always smart to ask rookies to change positions.

Some moves, like St. Louis moving the No. 2 overall selection, Jason Smith, to right tackle appear to be temporary. Others, like the Bengals having No. 6 pick Andre Smith make the same transition, appear to be permanent. The Redskins, on the other hand, are making the bold move of putting the 13th pick, defensive end Brian Orakpo, off the ball as an outside linebacker. Time will tell how long that change lasts.

Here's my feeling on this matter. These players are all high draft picks who get millions of dollars before they have even taken a snap at the NFL level. If the scouts for a team seem to think he will be better at one position over another, they probably know what they are thinking.

You can't just move guys around all the time, but moving an OL from LT to RT should not be a massive transition for a talented player, specifically a player like Andre Smith and Jason Smith, who are high draft picks. Both of their quarterbacks are right handed so they are not even having to protect the quarterback's blind side. Honestly, this should not be a difficult transition.

I have seen solid players look like a fish out of water when forced to play the other side.

These are not solid players, these are high draft picks who get paid WAY more than "solid players" get paid. These guys need to be near Pro Bowl caliber players to justify the money they are receiving.

All the critical muscle memory that he built up and acquired during his time in college is pretty much lost as he attempts to get his body ready to do the same things in the opposite directions.

Maybe I am being unsympathetic but that's why they practice every day and have the OTA's most players bitch about.

Maybe I am jaded from watching the Panthers offensive tackles jump back and forth between Guard, LT and RT, but I believe if a player has the skill to play LT, he should be able to play RT as well.

As far as Brian Orakpo, it is a much harder transition I have to admit to go from a DE to a LB. It's one of the reasons I was not as high on him as everyone else was. It is a hard transition and no matter how great of an athlete he is, there is a mental aspect that can lose players.

8. Jason Whitlock, who I think sometimes tries to be controversial for fun and get headlines (hence his Serena Williams article a couple weeks ago), actually has a great point in my mind in this article.

Though I do have to admit, I don't completely understand why he is so worked up when the video Bennett made got little to no publicity, other than Whitlock himself writing about it. Otherwise, I think he is fairly on point here.

9. I know the United States is in a recession but I thought we had covered that teams are still going to pay a lot of money for athletes? Apparently Ray Ratto did not get the memo.

The NHL free-agent market went more nuts than usual, with long and high-end contracts given out like Tootsie Roll Pops. The NBA market started Wednesday with Ron Artest going for a quick $33 million over five years.

The contract for Ron Artest felt sort of like a really good deal in my mind for Artest. I don't think that contract was exorbiant.

Oh, and the Cubs have two groups of buyers ready to throw $900 million at them so that they can freed of Sam Zell's tender mercies. He thought it would fetch beyond a billion, but a lot of people thought a lot of things a year ago.

I don't know why Ray Ratto is concerned that a group of individuals are making enough money to purchase a major league baseball team. I would think this is a good sign and not a bad sign. Wouldn't it be worse if no one could afford to buy the Cubs?

And in college, just to pick one example, the University of California football team is just about done selling 4,000 seat licenses at Memorial Stadium for $225,000 for each behind. Memorial Stadium has a section behind it called Tightwad Hill, and some of that money will go toward the cost of renovating the stadium so that Tightwad Hill will no longer offer a view of the field. Doesn't sound like money's so tight there, either.

Again, very wealthy people still have money to spend if they choose to, they are still losing money, but they can still splurge when they want. It is the middle class and others who generally are feeling the effects of the economic crisis now. You know, the fans, those are the ones hurting. Also, if they want to spend money on a seat, that's their choice and if the University of Cal wants to sell the seat for this much and there is a buyer, that is their choice. It's simple economics.

The money being hurled about like the prototypical sailors on leave will be forgotten, and contracts like Marian Hossa's 12-year, $62 million deal with the Chicago Blackhawks will be turned back upon him as proof that the system is out of whack, when in fact the system can only be taken out of whack by the owners themselves.

In a couple of years, that may seem like a really good deal for the Blackhawks. I don't know much about hockey but it seems like $5 million on a player like Hossa in 2014 is a good deal.

But in the shorter term, we learn that in what has been described as the worst recession since the Great Depression, sports wasn't very depressed at all.

The fans are not spending as much but the sports organizations are. It's not fair, but ask any person if he/she wants his/her favorite franchise to quit spending money on players. I think the answer would be a resounding "no."

10. I'm just going to go ahead and be an asshole here. Where is the gigantic stroke fundraiser for Tex Winter?

I just find it ironic we had to hear about a wonderfully nice and great fundraiser for months to help Dr. Z, who is a good columnist, but other than that has made no great contribution to the NFL, but Tex Winter doesn't get anything great to help him after he had a stroke and he was the originator of the Triangle Offense which won 10 NBA titles. Maybe the NBA isn't where caring happens after all.