Just under a week ago, I said that if the Rangers lost their next game to Islanders that would be Tom Renney's last. Well they beat the Islanders to buy some time, but they lost the two games since and now Renney is out. The new head coach for the Blue shirts is John Tortorella.
The Rangers got off to a tremendous start, and as it turns out, is what eventually led to the downfall of Renney. They have played just about .500 hockey since then, but have really come apart over the last 12 games where they have won just two of those contests. Getting off to a good start gave us expectations that we didn't have before the season started.
This off season the Rangers lost goal scores Jaromir Jagr (25 goals 71 points, in 2007-08) and Brendan Shanahan (23, 46 last season) and have not been able to replace them, they are in the bottom 3 in the NHL in goals-per-game and power play percentage. To sure up what was a struggling defense last year, G.M. Glen Sather signed Wade Redden, who has been so bad, that the "boos" rain down from the blue seats every time he touches the puck.
The Rangers have the goalie they would need to go all the way, in Henrik Lundqvist. And players like Chris Drury and Scott Gomez have been key pieces on winning teams before, but without the superstar player, they are carrying too much of the load for players who are not goal scores, they are both far better players when their responsibility involves setting up the goal rather than scoring it. And the lack of scoring has put way too much pressure on Lundqvist, who has to go into every game thinking shutout.
Renney may very well have been better off had they played .500 hockey all season, and been in a battle for a playoff spot, but early season success had us all dreaming bigger. The slide in the standings put Renney on the hot seat, and the recent lackluster play has sealed his fate, the players have tuned him out and the message was not getting through. It was time for a change, fair or not. You can't get rid of 15 players, so it's the coach who takes the fall when he can't motivate them.
New coach John Tortorella comes in with both a reputation, and a bark that need to be respected. He won a Stanley Cup with the Lightning and has been known to speak his mind. But can he turn around a team slumping this bad, and with so many parts missing. He will no doubt light a fire under these guys, and the energy level should be high at the Garden. It will be interesting to see if that translates to points both on the ice and in the standings.
There is just a bit over week left before the trade deadline, and Glen Sather needs to bring in a sniper, which will be very difficult. With parity throughout the NHL, very few teams will be looking to dump scorers, and the Rangers don't have a lot to trade that other teams would be interested in, outside the core. Sean Avery is a possibility, but with the two strong personality's, it may not be worth the distractions for a good - not great- offensive player. If no deal is pulled off, it won't really matter what Tortotella does, this team will not beat any of the big three in the Eastern Conference with the offense constituted the way it is at the moment.
Glen Sather took a step in the right direction today by making a change, but that's just the start of this teams problems. If he can't work out a trade, at best it's first round and out for this team, at that point it will be time to make another major change, Mr. Sather need only look in a mirror to see who the next firing should be.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
My two cents worth
I hope you got a kick out of the A-Rod press conference, just like I did. Some of the comments were just laughable, he says he had the stuff brought in from the Dominican, was afraid to ask anyone about them, yet he wasn't sure if what he was doing was wrong. Here's a clue Alex, if they don't sell it in this country, and you have to inject it, you might want to ask.
The way the Knicks are celebrating Nate Robinson winning the Slam Dunk Contest, is against everything New York sports is supposed to be about.
With the NBA trade deadline up coming, there has been a lot of trade talk surrounding Vince Carter. Carter is having his best season in some time, both in terms of production on the court, and in his leadership of the young players on the team. The Spurs have been mentioned as a possible destination, as well as several other teams who are thought to be a player away. Although it would probably end the Nets playoff hopes for this year, for the right package of expiring contracts, young talent or draft picks, it would be worth it, being that they are probably a year or two and a big free agent signing away from contending for a championship anyways.
Within the next 24 hours Tom Renney's future as Rangers head coach will be decided, a loss to the lowly Islanders will seal his fate. To be fair it's not all his fault, the team is missing a legitimate scorer, but with the guys they do have there is no excuse for being last in the NHL in goals-per-game. Their power play had gotten so bad, that as one caller on WFAN said "you wish they could decline the penalty".
The Devils are just unbelievable, they lose their first ballot Hall of Fame goalie, Marty Brodeur, early in the season and everyone thinks the season is over for them. Well, Marty is back at practice and far from the season being over, New Jersey is solidly atop the Atlantic Division and tied for second in the Eastern Conference. Goalie Scott Clemmensen has played like an all-star since he got the starting job, while Zach Parise and Patrik Elias have provided the scoring, they are 5th and 6th in the NHL in points and Parise is tied for second in the league in goals. The Devils just get it right.
The Mets ought to make an offer to Orlando Hudson and see what happens, I understand they believe Luis Castillo is their resurrection project, but let's be honest, with his knee's, even the Mets know that's unlikely, and Hudson batted 60 points higher than Castillo last year. And if Castillo shows there is still something left in the tank, how bad can it be to have a 3 time Gold Glove winner as a defensive replacement, and a .305 hitter, just this past year, coming off the bench. With the bottom of the line-up shaping to be as awful as it gets, they could use someone who can get on base as a pinch hitter.
With our economy in need of help so urgently, why would you pass a bill for Government spending. Both Liberals and Conservatives regularly complain about the inefficiency and red tape of Government agency's, so how is this bill going to help the economy now. On the other hand, a couple of immediate tax cuts, take very little time to spend. How many people who were struggling to pay the mortgage would all of a sudden start making the payments, and those who were doing okay before, now with some extra cash at hand, might go out to dinner and help the restaurant owner pay his bills. Foreclosures would go down, Banks would stabilize and the small business owner would pay down his debt, all instantly, with no red tape necessary.
The way the Knicks are celebrating Nate Robinson winning the Slam Dunk Contest, is against everything New York sports is supposed to be about.
With the NBA trade deadline up coming, there has been a lot of trade talk surrounding Vince Carter. Carter is having his best season in some time, both in terms of production on the court, and in his leadership of the young players on the team. The Spurs have been mentioned as a possible destination, as well as several other teams who are thought to be a player away. Although it would probably end the Nets playoff hopes for this year, for the right package of expiring contracts, young talent or draft picks, it would be worth it, being that they are probably a year or two and a big free agent signing away from contending for a championship anyways.
Within the next 24 hours Tom Renney's future as Rangers head coach will be decided, a loss to the lowly Islanders will seal his fate. To be fair it's not all his fault, the team is missing a legitimate scorer, but with the guys they do have there is no excuse for being last in the NHL in goals-per-game. Their power play had gotten so bad, that as one caller on WFAN said "you wish they could decline the penalty".
The Devils are just unbelievable, they lose their first ballot Hall of Fame goalie, Marty Brodeur, early in the season and everyone thinks the season is over for them. Well, Marty is back at practice and far from the season being over, New Jersey is solidly atop the Atlantic Division and tied for second in the Eastern Conference. Goalie Scott Clemmensen has played like an all-star since he got the starting job, while Zach Parise and Patrik Elias have provided the scoring, they are 5th and 6th in the NHL in points and Parise is tied for second in the league in goals. The Devils just get it right.
The Mets ought to make an offer to Orlando Hudson and see what happens, I understand they believe Luis Castillo is their resurrection project, but let's be honest, with his knee's, even the Mets know that's unlikely, and Hudson batted 60 points higher than Castillo last year. And if Castillo shows there is still something left in the tank, how bad can it be to have a 3 time Gold Glove winner as a defensive replacement, and a .305 hitter, just this past year, coming off the bench. With the bottom of the line-up shaping to be as awful as it gets, they could use someone who can get on base as a pinch hitter.
With our economy in need of help so urgently, why would you pass a bill for Government spending. Both Liberals and Conservatives regularly complain about the inefficiency and red tape of Government agency's, so how is this bill going to help the economy now. On the other hand, a couple of immediate tax cuts, take very little time to spend. How many people who were struggling to pay the mortgage would all of a sudden start making the payments, and those who were doing okay before, now with some extra cash at hand, might go out to dinner and help the restaurant owner pay his bills. Foreclosures would go down, Banks would stabilize and the small business owner would pay down his debt, all instantly, with no red tape necessary.
Monday, February 16, 2009
The Levels of Cheat and the Cardinal Sin
Over the past week or so there have been many discussions about cheating in sports, A-Rod and steroids have been at the forefront, but people have been bringing up everything from doctoring the baseball, to the Basketball player who takes a dive trying to sell a foul call.
Pete Rose has also chimed in on the steroid controversy, questioning why is he banned for life and not eligible for the Hall of Fame, while known juicers are still in the league and eligible for the sports greatest honor, he concludes by saying that if he had the opportunity he would still vote for guys like Bonds and Clemens to be in the Hall.
First let's clarify that there are without question different grades to cheating, just as one can tell a "white" lie. When an outfielder short-hops a line drive and then lifts his glove trying to get an out called, he is by definition cheating, if we would keep all players who tried selling a call to a referee out of the Halls of Fame, Cooperstown would just be a small city in central New York State where one can visit The Farmers' Museum.
With that being said how can we differentiate between Barry Bonds steroid use, Reggie Millers famous flops and players such as Graig Nettles or Albert Belle putting super balls or cork in their bats.
The way to separate them, would be to look to what extent the offender went to break the rule. When Whitey Ford used his wedding ring or had his catcher, Elston Howard, use the buckle of his shin guards to scuff the baseball, he wasn't bringing anything extra to the mound. These type of cheats would be like "white" cheats, when we hear about them we smile or maybe even chuckle a bit at the creativity of the offender. It's a completely different story when a player goes out of his way to get his hands on illegal substances that are not just illegal in sports, but are banned in this country, you can't even get a prescription for some of the steroids ball players have been known to use.
There is another point to consider, and this deals exclusively with the spitball. The use of the spitball was not banned until 1920, and when it was banned the rule was grandfathered in, 17 pitchers were allowed to keep using it until they retired, Burleigh Grimes was the last legal spitballer when he retired in 1934. If Baseball was willing to allow these pitchers to keep using the spitball, we can hardly compare it to the use of steroids.
And then we come to Pete Rose and betting on Baseball. The one thing a sport cannot overcome, is the suspicion that the game is in some way fixed. Baseball nearly shut down when the story broke that the Blacksox had thrown the 1919 World Series. If there is even a doubt that a player is intentionally trying to negatively affect his team, or that an official has some rooting interest, the game may as well close shop and go home because no one is interested. Sport is about the live drama unfolding before our eyes, where no one knows how it will all end, almost like the a high drama court case. If there is any questioning the "realness" of the game, the sport is done.
Pete Rose bet on the game with illegal bookies, even if he only bet on his team to win, there are two major problems that can arise, one is that he falls to far behind and they force him to throw a game too make up his losses to them. The second problem is that as a manager he can overuse a pitcher or burn out the bullpen ,which would not be in the long term interest of the team, but can help him win this game, if you had ten grand riding on it what would you do. It would also be hard to believe he never bet on his team to lose, it's just to tempting as a manger where you can quite easily decide to give some of your starters the day off.
Putting the integrity of the game on the line is sports cardinal sin, for anyone to jeopardize the sport to such an extent, a lifetime ban is the only just punishment. Pete Rose violated the sport he loves in the worst possible way, consequently he does not belong in it's Hall of Fame.
Pete Rose has also chimed in on the steroid controversy, questioning why is he banned for life and not eligible for the Hall of Fame, while known juicers are still in the league and eligible for the sports greatest honor, he concludes by saying that if he had the opportunity he would still vote for guys like Bonds and Clemens to be in the Hall.
First let's clarify that there are without question different grades to cheating, just as one can tell a "white" lie. When an outfielder short-hops a line drive and then lifts his glove trying to get an out called, he is by definition cheating, if we would keep all players who tried selling a call to a referee out of the Halls of Fame, Cooperstown would just be a small city in central New York State where one can visit The Farmers' Museum.
With that being said how can we differentiate between Barry Bonds steroid use, Reggie Millers famous flops and players such as Graig Nettles or Albert Belle putting super balls or cork in their bats.
The way to separate them, would be to look to what extent the offender went to break the rule. When Whitey Ford used his wedding ring or had his catcher, Elston Howard, use the buckle of his shin guards to scuff the baseball, he wasn't bringing anything extra to the mound. These type of cheats would be like "white" cheats, when we hear about them we smile or maybe even chuckle a bit at the creativity of the offender. It's a completely different story when a player goes out of his way to get his hands on illegal substances that are not just illegal in sports, but are banned in this country, you can't even get a prescription for some of the steroids ball players have been known to use.
There is another point to consider, and this deals exclusively with the spitball. The use of the spitball was not banned until 1920, and when it was banned the rule was grandfathered in, 17 pitchers were allowed to keep using it until they retired, Burleigh Grimes was the last legal spitballer when he retired in 1934. If Baseball was willing to allow these pitchers to keep using the spitball, we can hardly compare it to the use of steroids.
And then we come to Pete Rose and betting on Baseball. The one thing a sport cannot overcome, is the suspicion that the game is in some way fixed. Baseball nearly shut down when the story broke that the Blacksox had thrown the 1919 World Series. If there is even a doubt that a player is intentionally trying to negatively affect his team, or that an official has some rooting interest, the game may as well close shop and go home because no one is interested. Sport is about the live drama unfolding before our eyes, where no one knows how it will all end, almost like the a high drama court case. If there is any questioning the "realness" of the game, the sport is done.
Pete Rose bet on the game with illegal bookies, even if he only bet on his team to win, there are two major problems that can arise, one is that he falls to far behind and they force him to throw a game too make up his losses to them. The second problem is that as a manager he can overuse a pitcher or burn out the bullpen ,which would not be in the long term interest of the team, but can help him win this game, if you had ten grand riding on it what would you do. It would also be hard to believe he never bet on his team to lose, it's just to tempting as a manger where you can quite easily decide to give some of your starters the day off.
Putting the integrity of the game on the line is sports cardinal sin, for anyone to jeopardize the sport to such an extent, a lifetime ban is the only just punishment. Pete Rose violated the sport he loves in the worst possible way, consequently he does not belong in it's Hall of Fame.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Pitchers and Catchers Report ....Finally!!!
At long last Baseball is here, it's been a long time since Brad Lidge and the rest of the Phillies celebrated that last out of a strange World Series on the mound of Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.
True it's ten more days until there are actual games, and still quite some time between now and April 5th when the Dodgers and Giants meet in San Francisco in the first regular season game. And in that time some off the field things need to be settled, the biggest of which will be A-Rod reporting to Tampa in the next few days, and having to answer to the media circus that is there to "greet" him. Torre's book is still likely to grab some headlines along the way. And it's still not clear where Manny Ramirez, the best offensive player on the free agent market will land, there have been some reports that a deal with the Dodgers is imminent, but so far nothing official.
We may look back at our teams off season and wonder, will the big free agent singing work out as planned, will the aging veteran that was let go have a big year and make the G.M. look bad. Who will win the battle for a spot in the line-up. For players like John Smoltz and Trevor Hoffman, it will be strange seeing them in a new uniform for the first time in over a decade and a half.
But it's spring training and hope is in the air, we wonder who will be this years Rays and come out of nowhere and go deep into the playoffs. Which rookie that we still may not know how to pronounce his name properly will make an impact and be the next great player. It's spring and we can dream, Pirates fans can say "if Tampa Bay can do it why not us".
So get into the Baseball mood, watch some of your teams highlights from last year and get excited all over again. Get out that Baseball book that's been collecting dust all Football season and refresh your memory as to why you love this game so much. Go out and rent that Baseball movie you always wanted to see but kept putting off.
It's been a long off season, with a lot of soap opera like story's making the headlines and I just can't wait for the action to return to the field instead of the podium.
True it's ten more days until there are actual games, and still quite some time between now and April 5th when the Dodgers and Giants meet in San Francisco in the first regular season game. And in that time some off the field things need to be settled, the biggest of which will be A-Rod reporting to Tampa in the next few days, and having to answer to the media circus that is there to "greet" him. Torre's book is still likely to grab some headlines along the way. And it's still not clear where Manny Ramirez, the best offensive player on the free agent market will land, there have been some reports that a deal with the Dodgers is imminent, but so far nothing official.
We may look back at our teams off season and wonder, will the big free agent singing work out as planned, will the aging veteran that was let go have a big year and make the G.M. look bad. Who will win the battle for a spot in the line-up. For players like John Smoltz and Trevor Hoffman, it will be strange seeing them in a new uniform for the first time in over a decade and a half.
But it's spring training and hope is in the air, we wonder who will be this years Rays and come out of nowhere and go deep into the playoffs. Which rookie that we still may not know how to pronounce his name properly will make an impact and be the next great player. It's spring and we can dream, Pirates fans can say "if Tampa Bay can do it why not us".
So get into the Baseball mood, watch some of your teams highlights from last year and get excited all over again. Get out that Baseball book that's been collecting dust all Football season and refresh your memory as to why you love this game so much. Go out and rent that Baseball movie you always wanted to see but kept putting off.
It's been a long off season, with a lot of soap opera like story's making the headlines and I just can't wait for the action to return to the field instead of the podium.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
A-FROID
If you are one of those who are buying into the A-Rod apology, I've got a bridge to sell you here in Brooklyn.
Admitting to something after you've been caught is kind of odd in the first place, and after that he would like us to believe he took this stuff without having any idea what it really was, and he had no idea if in fact he did or did not fail the test.
If you would like to give him credit for admitting, let's not forget that this is a man who is overly worried about his appearance, and over the past year or so it has become obvious that the only way to survive steroid allegations was to admit and apologize. The big names who have apologized have since been cheered and signed new contracts. While Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens are under Federal investigation.
If you watched the interview with Peter Gammons it was obvious he was coached on every word he said, not the worst thing but I do have a hard time believing it's a sincere apology when he's using another man's words the whole way through.
He goes on to say he's not really sure what he used, this coming from a guy who probably reads the nutritional facts for an apple before he eats it. So he would like us to believe he knew it was illegal but never bothered looking into what it was. And he continues taking this illegal stuff he knows nothing about for a couple of years even though he never really saw a real advantage and keeps taking it despite repeated warnings that a drug test was going to take place, sure he thought it would remain anonymous but wouldn't he be a lot safer if he stopped using this worthless illegal stuff.
As to whether he knew he failed the test, he says he got a call saying he might or might not have failed the test, so like most people after receiving such a phone call he goes about business as usual for 5 years until a writer from SI shows up at his gym and informs him of the career changing information. Who's he trying to kid, of all the A-Rod stories this affects his career the most but he never bothered looking into it until a reporter got a hold of the news.
The only positive that comes of this story is that we now know if any future player is accused of steroids the popular move is to admit, apologize and hope it all goes away, what else would A-Rod do but follow the direction the wind is blowing.
Admitting to something after you've been caught is kind of odd in the first place, and after that he would like us to believe he took this stuff without having any idea what it really was, and he had no idea if in fact he did or did not fail the test.
If you would like to give him credit for admitting, let's not forget that this is a man who is overly worried about his appearance, and over the past year or so it has become obvious that the only way to survive steroid allegations was to admit and apologize. The big names who have apologized have since been cheered and signed new contracts. While Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens are under Federal investigation.
If you watched the interview with Peter Gammons it was obvious he was coached on every word he said, not the worst thing but I do have a hard time believing it's a sincere apology when he's using another man's words the whole way through.
He goes on to say he's not really sure what he used, this coming from a guy who probably reads the nutritional facts for an apple before he eats it. So he would like us to believe he knew it was illegal but never bothered looking into what it was. And he continues taking this illegal stuff he knows nothing about for a couple of years even though he never really saw a real advantage and keeps taking it despite repeated warnings that a drug test was going to take place, sure he thought it would remain anonymous but wouldn't he be a lot safer if he stopped using this worthless illegal stuff.
As to whether he knew he failed the test, he says he got a call saying he might or might not have failed the test, so like most people after receiving such a phone call he goes about business as usual for 5 years until a writer from SI shows up at his gym and informs him of the career changing information. Who's he trying to kid, of all the A-Rod stories this affects his career the most but he never bothered looking into it until a reporter got a hold of the news.
The only positive that comes of this story is that we now know if any future player is accused of steroids the popular move is to admit, apologize and hope it all goes away, what else would A-Rod do but follow the direction the wind is blowing.
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