Clipper Darrell Asked to Stop Being a Superfan

The Los Angeles Clippers have a fan for more than just this season?  Apparently they do.  He goes by the moniker Clipper Darrell.  Or at least he used to.  The Clippers have asked him to drop the word Clipper from his nickname and just go back to being plain old Darrell Bailey.

At first I could see how fans could be upset about this.  Here you have a franchise that is synonymous with losing for decades and this fan Darrell has been a season ticket holder for 11 years (poor guy).  The Clippers this season are finally starting to have some success and they ask their “super” fan to stop being so loyal.  I could see people’s initial reaction being like what is going on here.  The Clippers are lucky they can even retain a single fan for that long and they should embrace him and not shun him.

I agree the Clippers need to embrace such loyalty but that does not mean that they can have this guy going around as “Clipper Darrell” and representing the team.  Darrell is not on the Clipper payroll.  He has never gone through an interview process with the team and the team has never picked him to represent them.  In this day and age of the Internet, think about how every story no matter how insignificant gets put out there for people to find.   If Darrell does anything slightly suspect, and I’m not even talking legal or illegal, just something that socially could raise questions, do the Clippers want that associated with their franchise?  Think about how sensitive society can be sometimes, hundreds of people daily say things that have no malice content what so ever and it gets blown out of proportion and becomes negative publicity.  PR is so important today with the easy access to information and some guy that has no true affiliation with the team should not be allowed to represent them.  Would you want somebody representing you personally that you never met?  Of course not.  If somebody is going to speak on your behalf you want to talk to them first, make sure they know you and have your best interest in hand.

Think of other “super” fans out there.  The NFL has a ton.  There is the Jets fireman, the hogs in Washington, the barrel guy in Denver, the crazy Raider fans and the Cubs have Ronny Woo Woo.  These guys are great for little local news interviews and talking about the fan enthusiasm and optimism.  That’s it though.  You don’t see those fans trying to get out there and do more than that.  Darrell has tried to use an affiliation with the team for both personal and professional gain.  That is wrong.  I’m sure the team cares about the financial gain part, I personally don’t.  I do think it is wrong though for Darrell to force affiliation to an organization that has not asked for representation from him.

The Clippers have done nothing wrong in asking this guy to stop representing their team and to stop referring to himself as Clipper Darrell.  If the local media wants to refer to him that way, that’s fine.  There is nothing you can do there.  The Clippers also asked him to stop wearing his blue and red suit to games.  That is wrong.  They should not be allowed to tell a fan how to be a fan.  There is no dress code for fans.  You can ask for no representation but not dictate how to be a fan.  Be careful how far you go with this Clippers because it just might backfire on you.

Today’s Clown and Crown are:

CLOWNS: MLB- They are adding a fifth playoff spot this year in the form of a second wild card.  I am a fan of adding a second wild card.  I think that it puts wild card teams at a disadvantage and gives teams an incentive and reward for winning their division.  It should be that way.  I don’t agree at all with a one game playoff.  Last year the second wild card team would have both been one game behind the first.  In 2010 though the second AL wild card would have finished 6 games behind the first and in 2009 it would have been 8 games behind.  A one game playoff is not fair to that first wild card team.  It needs to be  a best of 3.  Baseball is not a one and done type of league like the NFL.  This is the first year that playoff expansion has really been discussed.  I like the concept.  I do, but it seems like they are rushing it so they can implement this year.  Take your time MLB and do it right.  Map it out properly and roll it out in 2013.  Don’t be CLOWNS over this really good idea.

CROWNS: Pittsburgh Steelers and Hines Ward- It is reported that the Steelers will release Ward this offseason.  He has been a great player for the franchise for 14 seasons.  The Steelers are making a purely business decision that I think neither side emotionally is happy with.  Both sides have extreme respect for the other party.  The Steelers and Ward have put out statements about the respect they have for one another.  Both sides understand that this is necessary.  There is no animosity.  This is how a lot more of these things should happen.  Look at some of the bad blood between Manning and the Colts earlier.  It’s hard when emotions get involved but my hat is off to Ward and the Steelers for being so classy!

Who’s Watching NBA Basketball?

Are you guys still watching the NBA season?  I know I’m not.  The NBA regular season has long been the most useless and drawn out regular season of all the major sports.  Even in this shortened season it still remains true.

How exciting is it for you a sports fan to know that over 50% of the teams in the NBA make the playoffs?  This really dilutes the importance of the regular season.  It renders it almost useless for most teams after the halfway point.  Think about the NBA standings right now.  In the East, the 7th and 8th seeds are both under .500.  How pathetic is that!  You don’t even need to be a winning team to make the postseason.  Also in the East, you have four teams fighting for two playoff spots.  Every other team already knows that they are or are not making the playoffs.  In the West, the 8th seed at least has a winning record.  They also have four teams fighting for one playoff spot.  Every other team in the West knows their fate.

Then if you look at the talent of the teams in the league there are truly 2 teams in the East that have a shot at winning and a team and a 1/2 in the West that have a chance.  While it is nice to know that there are some up and coming teams such as Philadelphia and Indiana, but having a nice season means you are not built to win a seven game series.  In reality, the NBA is a three team race with the Spurs having good experience but father time maybe being against them in the end.  The Clippers, Rockets and Magic although exciting to watch at times like Indiana and Philadelphia are not serious contenders compared to the big three – Miami, Chicago and Oklahoma City.

For this sports fan, I’d rather watch the March Madness tournament and prepare myself for the baseball season which includes spring training then waste anymore time watching the NBA.

Today’s Clown and Crown are:

CLOWNS: Atlanta Braves, Hawks, Falcons and Thrashers-Forbes magazine came out with their annual list of most miserable sports cities.  Guess which city won?  ATLANTA! They don’t just look at long term futility but also heartbreak endured by fan bases.  Atlanta is 1/5 in  World Series and Super Bowls.  Last year the Braves blew a humongous wild card lead going into September.  The Falcons and the Hawks both got bounced early in the playoffs and the Thrashers skipped town to Winnipeg.  Sorry Atlanta fans but your teams are CLOWNS!

CROWNS: Daniel McCutchen and A.J. Burnett-It has become customary in sports that when a player signs with or gets traded to a new team and he wants a particular jersey number that is already taken, that he compensates the player on the team for giving up the jersey number.  These gifts are usually in the form of cash, watches, cigars or liquor.  A variety of things that have significant value.  A.J. Burnett newly acquired by the Pirates wanted his jersey #34.  New teammate Daniel McCutchen already possessed it.

Burnett gave the most valuable gift to McCutchen I’ve ever heard of in this type of transaction.  He started a college fund for McCutchen’s daughter.  I think that is an awesome gesture by both men and way better than a watch. Burnett’s salary is way more than McCutchen’s and for him to take something like a jersey number and start his daughter off with the gift of education is awesome.  CONGRATULATIONS to both these men for having their priorities straight.

Can We Truthfully State That Kobe Bryant is at Michael Jordan Legacy Status?

As Kobe Bryant passes Michael Jordan on the all time all star scoring list and as he continues to ascend the all time scoring list, is it time to talk Bryant vs. Jordan?

Seasons Played

Bryant is in the middle of his 16th NBA season whereas Jordan only played 15 seasons in his career.  Jordan did go through two retirements including one that except for 17 games kept him out of the game for two of his very prime years.   You can’t fault Bryant for that as well as that he may have a longer career than Jordan.  While you can argue that the number of seasons played is a differentiator, Jordan’s overall career still makes it a legacy.

Clutch Player

Jordan in his era was the most clutch player in the league.  Since Jordan’s departure, Bryant has been the standard for clutch within in the NBA.  But both are so close in this non-quantitative statistic.  When the game is on the line and you need a bucket both of these guys excel at hitting the shot and they are the two best I’ve ever seen at creating a shot. If the game was on the line and I could only have one of these guys in their prime take the shot it would be a close call.  In all honesty, I don’t think you could make a wrong decision.  It’s dead even in my eyes.

Championships

How about the number of championships won?  Jordan has six rings to Bryant’s five.  Slight edge to Jordan for the number won.  Even then, both of won more than so many players in the league that it offers very little difference.

Awards

How about awards to separate them?  Jordan has 5 MVP’s to Bryant’s 3.  Jordan also won 6 Finals MVP’s to Bryant’s  2.  To top it off, Jordan also won Rookie of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year.  This is an obvious one who is on top, Jordan.

Statistics

The one item that really puts Jordan ahead is the per game statistics.  Bryant is a great scorer but has only averaged 30 points or more a game three times.  I say only as if scoring 30 is not a HUGE feat in the NBA.  It  is obvious that only a few players can average 30 points a game.  Compared to Jordan he has done it eight times and averaged over 30 points a game for his career.  He did that too while passing the ball a lot more than Bryant.  Jordan averaged 5.3 assists per game in his career including a season high eight per game while scoring 32.5 per game that same season.  Bryant averages 4.7 assists per game for his career and just reached a season high of six.  Jordan averaged 5.9 rebounds a game to Bryant’s 5.3.  Their shooting percentages for three pointers, free throws and field goals are almost identical.  The last statistic to compare is steals.  Jordan averaged 2.2 a game to Bryant’s 1.5 a game.  Jordan was a better defender than Bryant and could dominate the game on both ends of the floor better than Bryant.

Winner

Bryant fans I’m sorry to say, but as of today he’s still not quite at Jordan status.  While he is having a great career, maybe one day he be able to stand the comparison against Jordan.  As of right now, he still needs to take a back seat to Jordan.  I’d still put Bryant in the top 10 NBA basketball players of all time. However, the number one slot still belongs to a certain #23 from Chicago.

Today’s Clown and Crown are:

CLOWN: Josh Hamilton- Saying you owe the Texas Rangers nothing is quite a mouthful.  Then you tried to back track and say you do owe them great effort on the field and nothing more.  I’m not saying that you have to give the Rangers any type of a “home town discount”, but you do owe them some loyalty.  This team took a chance and gave you the opportunity to resurrect your career after some very serious problems that prevented you from reaching any type of production.  You have been a very valuable player and shown you were worth that gamble, but not without some stumbles along the way.  Each time the Rangers have stood by you.  They have had to hire special personnel for you to be successful and do many “special” things for you due to your problems.  I’m not saying sign with them at all costs, but you do owe some loyalty and honesty with the organization.  You owe them every opportunity to retain your services if they want to.  I really like you Josh, your story is fairly unique and semi-inspirational please don’t be a CLOWN about this free agent process.

CROWN: Jason Varitek- It was announced that he will retire on Thursday.  He was the captain on a very storied franchise.  He may have never had the flashy numbers, but his teammates liked him and was a leader of two world series championships including the 2004 team that broke the 86-year old curse in Boston.  I think his true value could never be quantified and he had a great career.  CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!

Ryan Braun is a Free Man!

The verdict is out on Ryan Braun.  He was found not guilty and will not serve any suspension from his failed drug test.  I held back on this topic waiting for the verdict. With the steroid era leaving such a black eye on baseball, I wanted to wait and see what came of his appeal before writing about it.

I will preface this by saying I am a HUGE Ryan Braun fan.  I do believe that he is innocent.  His press conference held on Friday when he arrived at spring training was very convincing, more so than any of the other athletes that were in a similar situation. Let’s be honest, I was never a fan of Bonds, Sosa or McGwire.  But, I was a pretty big fan of Clemens and A-Rod.  I know some of those guys have come out and admitted that they did use performance enhancing drugs but I never believed any of them from day one.  They just didn’t have the convincing way about them as Braun did.

Look at Braun through what I call the “eyeball” test.  Braun definitely doesn’t look like Bonds, Sosa or McGwire when they were juiced.  Also, Braun’s stats since the beginning of his career are very consistent.  They are almost identical year to year.  He has been tested how many times since his rookie year and passed them all.  He definitely didn’t get the statistic bump that those other three guys enjoyed. As he stated in his press conference, throughout the season he never got any faster or stronger.

If that doesn’t persuade you, how about the fact that his test was off the charts positive.  Braun said that the testosterone level was three times greater than any other test that they had given.  I don’t know if that’s true, but it was reported that it was unbelievably high.  That sounds funny to me. How many tests have been administered where one piece of data is way off from the norm.  Common sense would say maybe something went wrong.  This is where the MLB dropped the ball in my opinion.  If you are collecting data and one piece of data is way off, what do you do?  I would think you would test it again. Isn’t that what scientists do to make sure that there wasn’t an issue with the test.  Why didn’t they? They saw the original number looked a little goofy but just decided to find him guilty.  If he failed a second time, you would have an absolute on your hands rather than a questionable test.

Hey MLB, use some common sense.  If the first test looks abnormal, re-test the obscene failures within 24 hours to validate the original test results.   The biggest shame of all is that the story was leaked in the first place.  It puts Braun on the spot for something, that I at least believe, he never did.

Today’s Clown and Crown are:

CLOWN: NBA All-Star Saturday- That was without a doubt the worst slam dunk contest I have ever seen.  Where did the NBA find those guys? And, where was the creativity.  Each contestant just wanted to show who they could jump over.  It was ridiculous.  They could have done me a favor and when they turned the lights off for that dark dunk, they should have kept the lights off and called it a night. CLOWNS!!!!

CROWN: Washington Nationals- They signed Ryan Zimmerman to an extension through 2019.  He wasn’t a free agent until the end of 2013 so they had another two years before having to do anything.  I know Zimmerman kind of put them to the test, but they could have ignored that.  It didn’t work for Pujols in St. Louis.  We all know that in this day and age of free agency, once players hit the market, the bidding war ensues.  It makes it hard to hold on to your guys.  With Strasburg, Harper, Gio Gonzales, Espinosa, Ramos and all the other young talent they have, the Nationals are priming themselves to be steady contenders for awhile.

Help Me Pick This Week’s Clown and Crown

I am taking it to my readers – help me pick this week’s clown and crown.  Maybe I missed one that you think should be clowned or crowned.  Go ahead and add your pick to the poll.  Vote early and vote often.

What To Do With Ichiro?

Eric Wedge, the manager for the Seattle Mariners announced that he is moving Ichiro to the third spot in the batting order.  I’m not sure this is the best move for Seattle.  I’m not sure he should stay in the leadoff  position but I think that hitting third is not the answer either.  In my opinion, he should be slotted in the leadoff, second, or ninth positions.

The reason I think he should stay in the leadoff position is because one season should not be causing as much concern as it is.  Last year Ichiro definitely did not have a Ichiro type year.  He broke his streak of 10 straight seasons of 200 hits and his average was only .272 breaking his 10 season streak of .300.  He still had 184 hits and he still stole 40 bases.  He also scored 80 runs which was more than he scored in 2010.  With how consistent he has been I believe he should be given the chance to see if last year’s decline was for real.

But, if you want to move him, you could try hitting him second.  This is actually the move I would make.  Part of the reason for the move is to help the struggling Chone Figgins.  You can move him up to leadoff and if that works and Ichiro rebounds, which I believe he will, then you can set the table nicely.  Ichiro can move runners over with his bat control and he is a prime candidate to put on the hit and run.  This could help their offense that has been really bad of late to create a lot of runs.  They have two very highly touted prospects in Dustin Ackley and Jesus Montero to hit 3 and 4 to build that young nucleus and create some excitement.

The other alternative is to move him to ninth in the order.  This is popular in the AL to have a guy with good speed and has a good OBP to turn the lineup over.  This move I like the least between hitting one and two though. With Seattle’s poor offense it’s hard to have your best hitter hitting ninth.  He won’t get enough at bats and if he does rebound then this move is ridiculous.  It is better than hitting him third though.

Why is hitting Ichiro third so bad?  You can’t have a singles hitter hitting third because you won’t get enough run production.  He has only had double digit HR’s three times in his career and no more than 15 in a season.  The homer is not the end all be all and Seattle might be able to get away with that if he hit more doubles.  His career SLG is only .421 and his career OPS is only .791.  His career high for SLG is .465 and OPS is .869 and even these numbers would be on the low end for hitting third.  When you look at other 3 hitters in baseball these production numbers are way to low.

I would start the season hitting Ichiro second.  What do you guys think?

Today’s Clown and Crown are:

CLOWN: Bobby Abreu- He has told the Angels that if he can’t play everyday they should trade him.  What is wrong with this guy?  He is coming to the end of a very decent baseball career and he has yet to win a championship.  With all the moves the Angels have made they are legitimate contenders to win.  This guy wants to play everyday then take a shot at a championship.  His career is definitely on the decline and whether he can play everyday is debatable.  That’s not what makes him a clown though.  I say trade him back to Houston where he started his career.  Let him play everyday and lose 100 games.  Congratulations Bobby you’re a CLOWN!

CROWN: Kansas State Wildcats- The basketball team for the second time this year beat #3 ranked Missouri.  Missouri is 25-3 on the year and 2 of those 3 losses belong to K-State who are 19-8.  They started the season 11-1, but are 8-7 since.  They just defeated #14 Baylor over the weekend and now gave Missouri their first home loss of the year.  I think that K-State just put the bubble talk to rest and stamped their ticket to the dance. Congratulations!

The Three Best Baseball Off-Season Moves

Now that we’ve looked at the worst, let’s look at the three best baseball moves this off-season.

3. New York Yankees sign Hiroki Kuroda- Pitching was a real crutch last year for the Yankees and they still won 97 games.  They were able to add Michael Pineda and Kuroda to that staff.  They got a great deal on Kuroda’s one-year $10 million dollar contract.  He is 41-46 in his four year career, never having a season ERA above 3.80 which includes a 3.07 last year where he went 13-16.  He has also pitched 196 and 202 innings the last two years.  If he has a sub 4.00 ERA, he will win at least 16 games especially with that good Yankees bullpen.

The fact that the Yankees added to their staff with a low risk one-year contract makes this a great deal.

2. Cincinnati Reds sign Ryan Madson- Another one-year contract lands on the top 3 best moves list.  It’s all about taking low risks.   The dollar value at $8.5M is a good deal too considering what some of the closers were going for on the market with longer contracts tied to them.  It’s also good from the standpoint that in 2010 the Reds won the division and with Albert Pujols gone from the St. Louis Cardinals and Prince Fielder gone from the Milwaukee Brewers with  Ryan Braun still hanging in the balance, this is the Reds chance to really go for it.  They had already added Mat Latos as a starter and Sean Marshall to their bullpen.  Now adding a solid closer from last year makes them contenders in their division.

1. Arizona Diamondbacks trade for Trevor Cahill- The Diamondbacks did give up some good prospects in this deal and not a bad deal for Oakland.  But the Diamondbacks came out on top with this deal for a couple of reasons.

First, they have control of Cahill through 2015.  He is a young arm that they only have to pay $30M over the next four years.  Second, in his first three years in the league, he has already been an 18 game winner and an all star.  He has averaged over 200 innings pitched the last two years.  His strikeout per nine innings pitched has gone up each of his first three years in the league.  And finally, the Diamondbacks came out of nowhere to win last year.  They finished last in 2010 with 65 wins and increased that total by 29 wins to 94 last year.  They did this with excellent pitching from Ian Kennedy and Daniel Hudson.  Kennedy isn’t a free agent till 2016 and Hudson till 2017.  If these three young guys can grow into a rotation powerhouse then the Diamondbacks have set themselves up very nicely to compete in the West each and every year for a long time.

Today’s Clown and Crown are:

CLOWN: Oakland Athletics- Matt you said it yesterday, they have no direction.  The Cespedes signing was bad enough, but now Manny Ramirez?  I don’t get it at all.  I know it’s only a minor league deal and maybe he’ll flop during spring training and it won’t matter.  But, if he makes the club though, what’s the point?  Why take those at bats away from young guys that could use them to develop?  Oakland you started out the off season well, but you have finished it like a bunch of CLOWNS!

CROWN: Miguel Cabrera-I truly believe Detroit is crazy for even attempting to have him play third.  But, I must commend Cabrera for totally taking on this project in stride.  Many superstars especially as huge as Miggy, one of the top 5 offensive players in the game, would not be so accepting.  He knows what a great addition Fielder is offensively and how much he can help the Tigers offense and possibly help the team win more games.  This proves that he cares more about winning than his own ego.

The Worst Three Off-Season Moves In The MLB

With spring training officially starting, I want to take a look back at the baseball off-season and the moves made. Let’s focus on the worst off-season moves or at least the top three.

3. Seattle Mariners trade Michael Pineda for Jesus Montero- This trade really didn’t make sense to me from Seattle’s point of view. 

• Their farm system has a lot of arms that are major league ready or, if not, they are close to major league ready.
• They really struggle offensively.  Montero is a very young and big offensive talent.

Pitching is the one thing every team covets. If you have a stockpile of young arms that are not major league tested, why start moving them especially one that was exceptional last year in the first half.  If you decide to move a pitcher for offense, I think you need a cornerstone player that you can build your offense around.  Montero is not that player.

Have the Mariners learned nothing from the Minnesota Twins and San Francisco Giants last year?  You can’t have your best offensive player playing such a high injury risk position.  The Twins contends every year but not last season.  With Joe Mauer out they had their worst season.  The Giants came off a World Series championship and last season Buster Posey goes down.  What happens? They are last in the league in runs scored.

Montero has been criticized heavily for his defense and may need to be a DH.  Pineda is a big price to pay for a DH or a catcher that you can’t build an offense around.

2. Oakland Athletics sign Yoenis Cespedes- I can’t justify having this high risk and high reward prospect signing with a team that has very limited resources.  The A’s need to be very careful signing prospects.  They need a bunch of young talented kids to mold into a team. They started the off-season that way but then changed gears and signed a 26-year old raw prospect. Making him your highest paid player doesn’t make sense. 

1. Los Angeles Angels Sign Albert Pujols to a 10-year contract - He may be one of the top five (5) players of all-time.  By signing Pujols, they received a huge TV contract. 

From a baseball standpoint, his contract is j ust horrible.  The first three to five years may be decent.  The Angels will see good production and may be competitive.  Over the last two years his OPS has declined 0.100 pts.  Even with that decline, last year his OPS was 0.907 which still puts him as one of the best players in the league.

What do you do though when he is 42-years old and you need to pay him $30M?  Father time catches up to everyone. The back half of this contract will really hinder the Angels franchise.

Today’s Clown and Crown are:

CLOWN: Allen Iverson- Another athlete that made millions over the span of his career that is broke.  These stories seem more and more commonplace as it feels like there is a new athlete each week coming out saying he spent all his money.  When I hear them now I just shake my head and think what a CLOWN!

CROWN: Oklahoma City Thunder- They had Kevin Durant drop 51 points, Russell Westbrook put in 40 points and Serge Ibaka record a triple double that included 10 blocks. What a game by these three individuals!  The Thunder needed it as it took them to go into overtime to beat the Denver Nuggets.

I Think It May Be Time To Hang It Up Peyton Manning

I hate to say this because I have enjoyed watching this man play for 13 NFL seasons.  He has had a great career and will go down as one of the best quarterbacks in NFL history.  But, Peyton Manning, it is time to retire.

It came out yesterday that he actually had four neck procedures and not three.  That’s one too many procedures especially in this particular area of the body.  Peyton, you have a long life after football.  Don’t you want the quality of that life to be good?  No matter how much the NFL tries to protect the quarterback,  it is a very dangerous position that takes a beating.  Could you imagine a scenario where the defensive end gets off the guard and hits Peyton from behind?  He won’t even see it since it is in his blindspot.  The blow could cause some serious damage up to and including paralysis.  I just don’t think the neck and spinal cord are areas of the body or injuries to be messed with.

You have had a great career that has even transcended sports.

• 11-time Pro Bowler
• 4-time MVP
• Super Bowl Winner
• Definite first ballot hall of famer
• Starred in countless commercials
• The NFL version of Michael Jordan when it comes to endorsements
• A Saturday Night Live host

I’m the first one to advise these athletes to be careful in retirement time.  You don’t want to go to soon and regret that you left something in the tank.  I also believe it can be hard to play at such a high level, be competitive and then have to stop without notice.  This is not an issue of football ability.  This is a health issue and the way you want to be able to spend your life after football.  There is really nothing left for you to accomplish on the field.  You’ve really done it all.  Walk away and let the fans thank you for the memories you’ve given them.

Today’s Clown and Crown are:

CLOWN: Lebron James- He said that if he decides to go back to Cleveland he hopes to be accepted with open arms.  What is with this guy’s obsession for being liked?  If being liked is so important, why did he leave the way he did?  I am ok with him leaving.  He played hard, his contract was up, and he had every right to leave.  The way he did it was what was ridiculous.  You have a contract now, you still don’t have a championship and you’re already jockeying for your next deal it seems.  You have all the talent in the world.  You came out of high school and were mentioned in the same breath as Jordan and Kobe.  As time goes on, if you want to continue to be mentioned in the same breath as them, it’s time to stop the shenanigans and start focusing on being a winner.  Most importantly, stop being a CLOWN!

CROWN: Gary Carter- I honestly thought about writing the entire blog about this great man.  I thought though any sports fan who turned on ESPN or MLB Network know that they have done a great job of covering who this man was.  Carter was a great baseball man, but even more importantly he was a great man of faith, a family man, a very charitable man, and most importantly, a very happy individual who touched the lives of many.  His baseball accolades from a very difficult position physically are tremendous. He is a top 5 catcher all time as he was fantastic both offensively and defensively.  The baseball world not only lost a great ambassador of their game yesterday, but the world lost a great human being.  I had the honor of meeting Gary twice.  I have met many of the former great athletes overtime.  My interaction with him was unforgettable as I got to see who he was a as person not just an athlete. I will forever be a huge Gary Carter fan and I send my deepest condolences to his family. R.I.P.

What are the Oakland Athletics Doing?

I want to know what Oakland was doing signing Yoenis Cespedes to a 4-year contract?!  This is a wrong fit for Oakland for a couple of reasons and I am going to tell you why.

First of all, this is the wrong type of prospect the A’s should be going after especially with their very limited funds.  They always rank in the bottom 5 in payroll.  Their highest paid player in 2012 will now be Cespedes.  I think they need to go after a more polished prospect.  Cespedes workouts on YouTube are amazing.  He is a physical freak of nature but that doesn’t automatically equal baseball productivity.  He had an awesome WBC in 2009 and has consistently put up huge numbers in the Cuban League.  However, he was horrible in the 2009 Baseball World Cup hitting below .200 and was even benched as the event went on.  He also struggled in the Dominican Winter League this past January going 5-35 (.143) with 1 HR and 10 strikeouts.  He has some issues with his swing and might not live up to the hype surrounding him.  He is also 26 years old.  I believe the A’s organization needs to go after more polished, younger prospects that can grow given time.

Secondly, the timing is really bad for the A’s.  Let’s say that Cespedes is a home run prospect.  He puts up unbelievable numbers from day one.  How does that help the A’s today?  They just traded three young pitchers that were all-stars in Trevor Cahill, Andrew Bailey and Gio Gonzalez.  They did this for 10 prospects that were even younger then they were which means they aren’t even building for this year or the next even, but possibly 3-5 years down the road.  Guess what the Cespedes contract will be in the final year or even done by then.  I liked the A’s earlier moves.  Looking at what the Rangers and Angels have been doing, getting younger to compete 3-5 years from now made sense.  This signing of Cespedes just doesn’t fit that game plan.

I did hear that the plan may be they are hoping that Cespedes lives up to the hype and the A’s move him for even more prospects.  That doesn’t make sense to me either because why take the risk.  He just became your highest paid player.  IF he pans out and that’s a big IF, then you get the prospects.  IF he doesn’t, he makes the most money on a club that doesn’t have money to spend.  They could use that money to be a more competitive ball club for their fans or better yet, use that money on one nice younger free agent that has some major league service time that will be there when your team is ready to win.

Today’s Clown and Crown are:

CLOWN: Roddy White- He blasted NFL Roger Goodell for his salary.  Are you kidding me?  The man has a right to earn whatever the NFL deems him to be worth.  Just like the players, their value is what teams are willing to pay for players with their production at their position.  Goodell has been very good for the NFL.  He has done A LOT in the way of players safety which includes you Roddy.  You don’t want people complaining about you making your money so don’t be a CLOWN when it comes to other people making theirs.

CROWN: Tampa Bay Rays- They signed manager Joe Maddon to a 3-year extension.  To me he is the BEST manager in baseball.  He gets the most out of his team year in and year out.  He competes in the toughest division in baseball with 1/4 of the payroll.  He has his team dress in PJ’s and plaid suits on road trips and they seem to respond to it.  He is a great interviewee, great manager, great for the game, and most importantly Tampa great for your franchise.  CONGRATULATIONS Tampa you got the best!!!!!!