Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Some Sports Stuff

1. Michael Vick should be allowed to play in the NFL, if a team wants him.

Yes, he was convicted of organized dog fighting, a despicable and disgusting crime. He has been vilified in the media, humiliated across the country, and will never be respected like he once was. It will haunt him for the rest of his life. But he served his time and paid his debt to society, as determined by our legal system. He should be allowed to play.

The question is who wants him. What team would take a convicted and disgraced felon? The answer is any losing team that wants a talented quarterback to help him win. I think he’ll go to Detroit or Kansas City.

2. Hank Basket got hurt today.

Yes, Kendra’s hank. Not good for the Eagles or E!. I don't even know who else we have. But I'm still in baseball mode right now. Speaking of which...

3. I don’t understand why people get angry at the Yankees’ for having the highest payroll in MLB.

Yes, it’s massive, but it’s sustainable for them. It’s a build on years and years of success. I don’t know much about the team, but there’s something strange (to me) with complaining about a winning team’s ability to pay for star players. Sour grapes, anyone?

Besides, a team of stars doesn’t always win. Their massive payroll didn’t help them win any games earlier this season. What good did us do then? Baseball is a business. You don’t complain about the guys who can spend the money. You prove that money doesn’t matter. Hasn’t anyone seen Major League?

Maybe some one can give me some insight on this matter. Perhaps a certain Blue Jays fan might have some feelings on this subject...

6 comments:

TheMediaDude said...

#3 was an honest question. If you have any feelings on the topic, please let me know why the Yankees are evil.

70MPH70 said...

I agree with you on Vick.

On #3, I don't have a problem with the Yankees. My problems are as follows:

A) Being in a division where I have to play the Yankees more than other teams.

B) Being in a division where I have to play the Red Sox more than other teams.

C) These teams can double their payroll and make money AND sign all of the top amateurs via the draft and international free agents.

D) The rules allow the Yankees and to spend double what the Blue Jays can spend and then provide "hush money" in the form of a luxury tax. So my owner is happy that he gets more money, but I suffer because my team can't compete.

E) If the Blue Jays made the same salary mistakes as the Yankees (they have: see Rios, Wells, Ryan), then they are awful. If the Yankees make those mistakes, they pay their way out or buy other players.

F) A-E have seriously ruined baseball for me. I don't enjoy it anymore. If my Jays or the Rays had been seriously good this season, the Yanks and Sox would have made deals at the deadline to make their teams better. If it wasn't for roto, I'd be out.

TheMediaDude said...

Thank you. Excellent summary, and I completely sympathize. I'd be pissed if my team were at a disadvantage because of things that have nothing to do with the game.

I'm just getting into MLB, and I'm pretty sure the Yanks' winning streak has something to do with it.

Have you ever thought about rooting for the Yankees? It's so easy!! :)

Mary said...

I want you all to know that I am going to be a football fan now. Go Vikings!

tom mattback said...

I'm a Yankees fan, and I wholeheartedly agree with Jefe that what they (and the Red Sox, Dodgers and other big market teams) do is completely unfair to other teams, and if I were a fan of another team (esp. in the AL East) it would be hard to watch baseball knowing - before the season even starts - that my team has almost no chance of getting into the playoffs. However, as Andrew pointed out, money does not guarantee a spot in the World Series. Spending very little can work (see, eg. 2003 Marlins, 2006 Cardinals, 2007 Rockies, 2008 Rays and Phils), and spending lots can also mean nothing (see, eg. the Mets since about 1990). Smart baseball people can make good baseball teams with very little - it just so happens that the AL East is home to 2 of the worst-run teams in baseball (the O's, which are exponentially worse than the Jays). The yankees are committed to putting a competitive, playoff-caliber team on the field every season, which is hard to argue with - they are a baseball team, and they are trying to win baseball games. That being said, I don't think any baseball player deserves to be paid $250MM, and I cringed when they signed Sabathia and Texeira to huge contracts in the same week. They've created a situation where most teams can only hope to develop some great player in the minors and hope they win before they bolt to another team that will vastly overpay them (the Twins are a perfect example of this: Johan Santana to the Mets, and the soon-to-be-gone Mauer and Mourneau). I think a salary cap would be good for baseball as a whole, but I don't think it's going to happen anytime soon.

And since Jefe raised it, let me go off on a rant: the red sox do the same f*cking thing that the yankees do, but everyone still loves them so much because they're "underdogs" or some bullsh*t. F*ck that. I hate the Red Sox. On a related note - Andrew, you are not truly a Yankees fan until you have an unconscious, unending and undying hatred of the Red Sox.

And I'm looking forward to seeing Vick in an eagles uniform - what's the over/under on how soon philly fans start calling for mcnabb to be benched? 5 minutes into the first game of the season?

tom mattback said...

Wow, my comment was longer than the original post. Completely unnecessary. Except the part about the Red Sox.