Thursday, May 31, 2012

Dadgum It

In a day where I could spout off conspiracy theories in the NBA about the draft lottery or about the foul disparity in Miami's win over Boston last night (which I watched the end of, and I think Boston mainly ran out of gas plus LeBron continues to play out of his mind), or even about how no one on the Phoenix Coyotes will be punished for their classless actions after getting knocked out by the LA Kings. Today... I take sides with someone I never would have expected to.

Living in Chicagoland we get coverage of both the Cubs and Sox, and all their games are televised. I can't really sit and watch a White Sox game though due to Hawk Harrelson. He's a passionate guy and loves his team (which I don't fault him for), but often, his blind homerism affects the way he calls games (probably largely why GQ ranked him and Steve Stone the worst TV tandem in the majors). Often my favorite Sox games to watch are the ones where they're getting smoked, because Hawk says next to nothing. But when he does open his mouth, he often inserts his foot.

The best example of this, by far, would be a Cubs-Sox game from 2007.The Cubs were threatening, and on a ball put in play, a Cub ran into Juan Uribe, then was thrown out as part of a double play... or so it appeared. The umpires got together and reversed the outs citing the fielder interference on Uribe. Listening to the Cubs broadcasts, they knew it was fielder interference, pointed it out, and sounded intelligent. Hawk, on the other hand, didn't see it and apparently wasn't notified of the decision, but called the play "BS" and that he had never seen that in all his years of baseball (a call my friends and I will make fun of all the time). He never said anything after the game about having made a mistake. For more details about this, you can view the story here.

All that being said... when I saw this play from yesterday's Sox-Rays game on my train home, I was shocked; not only by the call but that Hawk actually seemed to be sensibly angry for once. You can see the video of the play here.

I've been paying attention to baseball for probably 15 years. In my experience, when somebody on your team gets plunked and you want to send a message, you hit a guy on the other team back. The home plate umpire will issue a warning to both teams, and usually that's the end of it. Whether this was a botched attempt at retaliation or just a flat out wild pitch, I don't know. Yes, it was behind Ben Zobrist, but if anything, that's where you issue a warning to both teams. The point is made. That clearly didn't happen here, and Hawk was right to call out Mark Wegner for his hair trigger call.

I don't know if it's a product of being in a skeptical society, I've been blinded for years, or what the case is, but just based on several of my last few posts, officiating in professional sports has gotten absolutely horrible lately. There continues to be accusations of corruption in the David Stern Basketball Association, the NHL has seen horrible officiating and inconsistent punishments from the league office, and the MLB had already had some issues with umpires thinking they are bigger than the game.

I've always heard and believed that a good official in any sport is one who is completely unknown. Mark Wegner got his name out there for reasons he had no business doing. And yet some "experts" claim that the immediate ejection was justified? Please. For once, I agree with Hawk Harrelson. Let the players do a little policing themselves (within reason of course), and intervene when things get out of hand. Things weren't out of hand. We're descending into a dark place, sports fans.

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

The Old, The Young, and The Gatekeepers

The NBA Playoffs are supposed to be a fun time when 16 basketball teams collide on a quest for immortality. To an extent, this is what we have so far. But at the same time, there have been some issues.

Everything is golden in the West. We had a pair of rusty teams playing on Sunday in the Spurs and Thunder, probably the two most complete teams left standing at this point. And despite their rust, they played a fantastic game that the Spurs were able to pull out 101-98. The greats find a way to pull those out. This is not a criticism of the Thunder, they are also a great team, but I think the Spurs are better. They have more depth and play basketball the right way. Plus even at his age, Tim Duncan is still a great player. And Gregg Popovich is Coach of the Year for a reason. I don't see the Thunder going away though; I don't think Durant and Westbrook will let their team go down without a fight.

Things seem a little murkier in the East. I watched much of the 2nd half of the Boston-Miami game last night. I'll get my gripes out of the way first, starting with the technicals. The only one I saw live was Rondo's, and that one was totally justified since he overreacted to getting tangled up with Shane Battier. Having seen the clip of the first half technicals (below), other than the Garnett delay of game, the officials should be ashamed of themselves.


There was also a play in the 4th where LeBron traveled leading up to a bank shot. I counted the steps; he took 3 before shooting off-balance. There were also occasions where both guys were whining and complaining about calls, Wade even getting closer to the official on his second foul (as opposed to Allen moving away). Of course, no whistles. Sham officiating.

Now, that being out of the way... Miami absolutely deserved to win last night. It was clear pretty much the whole second half. They played great team defense. They rebounded well. And most importantly, LeBron and Wade (despite the travel by LeBron and seemingly continued flops by Wade, plus the complaining by both) attacked the basket and looked impressive for the 4th straight game. LeBron is taking the step people thought he would in Cleveland, but never fully did. I personally don't think he can keep that pace up for anywhere between 7 and 13 more games, but if he can, the jokes will stop. As a Bulls fan and something of a basketball purist from having watched MJ play, I don't want LeBron to win a title. But if he raises his game and leads Miami to a title (not takes a major backseat to Wade), then I'll have nothing else to do but tip my cap to the most talented guy in the NBA for finally getting a ring. Until then, he still has a lot to prove, and has an incredibly tough road ahead of him.

Friday, May 25, 2012

Confessions of a Slow, Uncoordinated, Out of Shape White Guy

Way back when I first started writing I had made mention of how I played sports in school for a while, including basketball through my sophomore year at Aurora Christian. Since then I have not kept as active as I probably should have, playing basketball and the like only so often since then. That's why one of my favorite days the past few years has been the night of the WONC Alumni Basketball Game.

I don't know how long this tradition has gone on for; presumably it started long before my beginnings in broadcasting back in 2007. But every year near the end of the school year, the station staff book Gregory Arena for an evening so the current staff can take on a group of alumni in a friendly game of basketball. Despite my having had some ties to WONC for 5 years, this is only the third year I've played in the game.

There were supposed to be a fair number of alumni tonight, but I was one of only 4 alums that made it, all of whom finished at NCC within a term of me, including Geoffy, Marc Dahlquist (currently of Naperville Community Television) and Will Landingham (currently coaching at CICS-Longwood in Chicago). We ended up borrowing a few current staffers to round out our team, including Trevor Magnotti (junior, one of the top guys in the sports department), Jonny Kaufmann (senior), and a freshman whose name escapes me. Apparently he was their "best player", which may have helped. Hard to say.

This was a great game, but at the end, the alums (with help), wound up winning 61-50 in a game where we all were reminded about how out of shape we are, but ultimately had a lot of fun. The current students had a good all around game with several guys hitting some big shots (most notably Kevin Jackman and Jeremy Rushing), with some great help all around. Unfortunately they seemed to have the Indiana Pacers complex in that I think they relied too much on shooting 3's. But they played good defense overall.

I was reminded how out of shape I was throughout the game, needing to sit a few times. I ended up finishing probably about 2-8 or so from the field for 5 points, plus I think 3 or 4 rebounds and a couple of nice assists. I was able to drive past a defender for an open layup early, and had a couple later attempts swatted away nicely. Then with about a minute to go they left me alone from about 24 feet, and I drained an open 3... something I have no business hitting, as the final nail in the coffin.

Clearly I wasn't the reason we won. The borrowed folks were key contributors, with Jonny driving and scoring throughout while playing great defense, Trevor hitting some big shots in the post, and our borrowed freshman playing a good point guard game, scoring well. Geoffy only had 2 points, but played well. Marc only lasted one half, but was aggressive. The biggest factor I think though, was Big Will, who looked like Bill Russell tonight. He probably scored around 20 points and had to have had at least 20 rebounds (Trevor said he thought it was at least 40), including a ton on the offensive glass.

Most importantly, everyone had fun tonight I think. I know I was gassed, but I had a blast. I love WONC, and I love these staffers both past and present. This is always a fun get together for the young guys to get to know some alums, and it's a good way to try and stay in shape. For those of you WONC staffers who happen to read this, thank you guys for continuing to be awesome.

Friday, May 18, 2012

Thanks Kerry

The year was 1998. Michael Jordan had not too long ago hit his final shot as a Chicago Bull and home runs (and roids) were taking Major League Baseball by storm. My mom was out of town with our church's youth group, so my dad decided to take me to the holiest shrine of baseball for the first time.

The Cubs were in the hunt for an eventual wild card berth and had one of the most beloved players of the time playing right field. They also had a sensational rookie taking the league by storm named Kerry Wood, or Kid K at the time. He was taking the mound for the Cubs on July 26, 1998 against the Mets. My first game at Wrigley Field.

Wood would go on to pitch 7 innings with 6 strikeouts and one mistake (a solo shot in the 2nd by Brian McRae). He would also benefit from Sammy Sosa hitting his 38th home run of the season as the Cubs went on to win 3-1. It was a day I'll never forget.

So it's with sadness today that I heard Kerry Wood decided to announce his retirement from the game. It seems like time, given that he has struggled this season. You hate to see an athlete go out on a sour note like that, but he's picking a good time. From what I've heard, he will make one more appearance before hanging it up. Given that he's playing at Wrigley, it seems appropriate.


Wood has been one of my favorite Cubs since I really started paying attention to baseball in 1998. Obviously he didn't reach the potential so many figured he had, with injuries plaguing him early and often in his career. Through 2011, Wood is 86-75 with a 3.67 ERA and a solid 1.27 WHIP, while also recording 63 saves. Certainly capable of much more, but whenever he pitched at a game I attended, it was something to behold.

The aforementioned 1998 win not too long after he punched out 20 Astros. But my favorite memories come from 2003, when he started both games I went to at Wrigley. In a September start against the Mets, he threw a shutout, striking out 11. Earlier that June, he beat the Milwaukee Brewers, notching the ever-common 1-6-5-3-4-3 double play in the top of the 1st and later launching a home run in a game that to this day is still the best Cubs game I have ever attended.

I wish his career had been more fulfilling, and while the numbers aren't there, his passion for the game and love of the city of Chicago and Cubs fans everywhere made him a fan favorite.

Kerry, whenever your last outing is, go out there and have fun one last time. And as you step off that field for the final time, soak in the ovation. It's the least we can do to thank you for your loyalty and the memories you gave us. Thank you again.

Eamus Catuli!

Thursday, May 17, 2012

Bringing Down the Foam Hammer

I will say this: I seem to have found a theme for my recent posts. And I like feeling able to post something that isn't repeated anti-BCS rhetoric. So today, we continue with officiating and decisions coming from above.

Yesterday it was baseball. Last month I was attacking Brendan Shanahan. Yesterday I could also have easily mentioned something related to the NBA playoffs, but decided to take the road that seemed to be less traveled. Unfortunately it reared its head again last night into today with the NBA's decision not to punish Dwayne Wade any further than the flagrant-1 he was assessed in Game 2 against Indiana. Here's the video for those who have missed it.
We get a good view of the context here, which helps. I think the play Wade was complaining about (the initial layup attempt in this video) should have been a foul on the Pacers. Steve Kerr says the defender was straight up (true), but since he's airborne, that should be a foul. This is really the only thing I agree with Wade on.
If contact committed against a player, with or without the ball, is interpreted to be unnecessary, a flagrant foul--penalty (1) will be assessed. A personal foul is charged to the offender and a team foul is charged to the team.-NBA Rule 12, Section IV.a
If contact committed against a player, with or without the ball, is interpret-ed to be unnecessary and excessive, a flagrant foul--penalty (2) will be assessed. A personal foul is charged to the offender and a team foul is charged to the team. -NBA Rule 12, Section IV.b (source)
The contact on the Collison fast break was absolutely unnecessary, so it was definitely deserving of Flagrant-1 status. I think you can argue Flagrant-2 as well, as Wade left his feet to hit Collison (a la the slime known as Raffi Torres) and while basketball is different from hockey, there were much easier and less dirty ways he could have gotten his point across.

I was reminded of a story Bill Simmons told in The Book of Basketball about Dave Cowens of the Celtics dishing out a similar hit then yelling at the ref, "Now that's a [expletive] foul!" By contrast Wade here seemed to be in his usual whining mode about the call.

Yet amazingly, despite the intent of Wade to level an opponent and his perceived insistence on his innocence, the NBA has decided that they don't need to punish Wade... yet a similar play netted a 2 game suspension for Jason Smith when he decked Blake Griffin. Conspiracy theorists are rampant saying that the NBA is fixed. I don't think that's true, but I do think that there is a favoritism complex in the NBA.

Fans of the NBA pretty much anywhere except Miami all hate the Heat. I'm one of them. It's not because they're a good team; I respect squads like Boston (even though they're on the downhill) and Oklahoma City and San Antonio because they play the game well. Miami does too, but they are an arrogant team (a source of animosity) who threw a party before the 2010-11 season claiming that they will win several championships before proving anything and are led by 2 superstars (I can't in good conscience dispute this fact) who also happen to be two of the biggest whiners in the league.

I dislike LeBron because of his callous treatment of Cleveland and his perceived arrogance on the court when he has yet to win anything, yet I still respect him and his talent. But I've grown to hate Wade after not minding him for the first 7 years of his career. He has turned into a flopper, a whiner, and a scumbag on the court with some stupid plays (elbowing Rip Hamilton in Chicago this year, dislocating Rondo's elbow last year in the playoffs). That's why the entire nation except for South Florida is pulling for Indiana in this series. That's why there's such an uproar amongst NBA fans.

Since the NBA seems dead set on its blinded ways, I say in Game 3, the Pacers should send Wade a message. Nothing dirty, nothing debilitating. But when he tries to drive the lane, have Tyler Hansbrough or one of the other big men give him a good, hard playoff foul. Send him hard to the floor with no intent to injure him, but to let him know that he is a scumbag, and they will not tolerate his crap any more. And hopefully one day soon, neither will the league.

Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Influencing the Outcome

It's been weird lately; several of my most recent posts have to some degree involved officiating. I felt compelled after catching a bit of SportsCenter last night to have a little something more specifically tied to the issue.

I've mentioned more than once here that I'm a firm believer that the officiating is not the main reason why one team loses a game to another, and that you can always tie the result back to something that happened during the course of play that determined the winner and loser. On rare occasions there are exceptions to this rule, and while this particular instance might be one, it's hard to say.

I didn't watch any of this Toronto-Tampa game, but I saw this highlight last night after the fact and was intrigued by what happened.

On the whole, I tend to like the umpires in Major League Baseball (contrary to what a lot of people say). It's a hard job, and more often than not they make the correct calls. I would dare to say an overwhelming majority of the calls they make are correct. It's when they're wrong and it leads to something big happening for one side or the other that blood boils.

For this play? When I first watched the replays I immediately though both the 3-1 and 3-2 pitches were not in the strike zone. I don't mind Lawrie running towards first base. If anything, I liken it to a catcher trying to bring the ball back over the strike zone on a borderline pitch in that you're trying to sell the call (which you'll notice, Tampa's catcher did on the 3-2 pitch). Some of the theories have been that when Lawrie ran towards first it aggravated Bill Miller (the home plate umpire) to the point where he wanted to remind the youngster of his place and call a strike on anything borderline. While I understand you want to keep the rookies from getting big-headed, this is absolutely not the way to go about it. I've also heard arguments that the strike zone was tilted that way all game for both sides. I didn't see the game so I don't know for sure either way, but if it were consistently called like that I have my doubts that Lawrie would have reacted the way he did.

Everything that came after the bad call however was handled appropriately and correctly. Lawrie tried to argue balls and strikes, which is an automatic ejection. Same for the manager in trying to protect his player. The fun aspect thrown (pun not intended) into all of this was Lawrie tossing his helmet on the ground and seeing it ricochet into Miller. By rule, Lawrie will get suspended, and rightfully so. When deciding his punishment they need to remember that he didn't throw it at Miller, but at the ground. At the same time they also need to let Lawrie know not to lose his cool. The 4 games he got should suffice.

On top of all this, Miller needs to see some discipline as well. This isn't like Jim Joyce a couple years ago who missed a call, realized his mistake later and apologized. I don't think this was a call that decided the game, but he made himself appear to be bigger than the game of baseball by taking it upon himself to teach Lawrie a lesson. Then again maybe he honestly thought it was a strike. If he did, I'm not sure what his rationale was.

In the flow of the game, had the correct call been made, Lawrie gets first base with one out. If the rest of the games goes as it did, it's possible that ground ball ends the game with a double play, but it's hard to say. Approaches at the plate can differ between none on/two outs and one on/one out. We will never know for sure.

Umpires are human too. Like the ballplayers, the men in blue can make mistakes. When they don't, no one notices them. When they do, there's an uproar. I think the uproar here is justified, but Lawrie is at fault too. He broke the rule of not arguing balls and strikes, and he paid for it, as he'll pay for the helmet incident. But Miller should also pay for drawing attention to himself... intentionally or otherwise. Both are guilty.

Thursday, May 10, 2012

A Long Summer's Wait

Photo taken by Justin Zipser.
I have the worst sense of timing it seems.

During much of the regular season for the Blackhawks, I would up tuning into games where they'd lose in overtime. I had just gotten in my car to turn on ESPN-1000 to hear the end of the Bulls game tonight. Unfortunately it just so happened I tuned in to hear Iguodala's free throws that sealed the series. My stomach sank.

This was a painful series for us Bulls fans, as I'm sure Geoffy can attest to. It was a painful series for the Bulls, who became the Walking Wounded by series' end. And for a team that came into the postseason thinking championship or bust, it was a punch in the stomach, following by a kick in the groin.

You have to give the Bulls credit; they were not going to go out without a fight tonight. And they gave Philly a great fight pretty much the whole series. But the Sixers executed in the fourth quarter consistently; the Bulls coughed up leads late. It's what we hounded LeBron about last year in the Finals, so the Bulls deserve that same scrutiny. Based on the fact that they had 4th quarter leads they couldn't protect, the Bulls should have won this series. But they gave it away.

I have to tip my hat to the Sixers for sticking by what Evan Turner said before the playoffs started. They backed up his talk. That being said, I am rooting for Boston in the next round. Not just because I think they have the best shot in the East of taking out Miami, but also because of the callous actions of some of the Sixers fans. I know, every city has its scumbag fans. I'm a Cubs fan; I know many of my fellow Cubs fans can sink pretty low. But so many of the stories of bad fans come from Philadelphia, and I feel bad for the good fans there whose reputations are tarnished by these goons.

That little rant aside, what can we expect from the Bulls next season? Obviously I think they'll be back in the picture next year, but at least for starters as a fringe contender. We don't know how long Rose will be out while his knee heals, and Deng will need wrist surgery. I certainly think the rest of the core can tread water until the key guys return. As for reinforcements, don't expect anything. I doubt the Bulls will use their amnesty on Boozer just yet as he improved overall during the season, but disappeared tonight. Without that, there's minimal cap space to add pieces other than through the draft, and I don't know what the Bulls can get yet.

The title window is nowhere near closed yet though, Bulls fans. Try and enjoy the summer watching our baseball teams overachieve a little bit, prepare for football to start up again, and know that this team will be back. It may take a while, but they will.

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

We'll Raise Our Voices High

For most of the fall the attention on college football is focused on the schools with several thousand students, not always remembering that there is legitimate talent at the lower levels... even NFL-caliber talent. For someone like me who has spent 5 years paying attention to a North Central team run the gauntlet of the CCIW, I've seen some very talented teams with some exceptional athletes. I remember a 2010 game where I saw scouts from a couple teams (the Jets and I don't remember who else) come to see us in action.

Last year I was hopeful that defensive beast Matt Wenger would get a call to join an NFL roster, dreams that sadly went unfulfilled. But I remember seeing a tweet in the fall from Mel Kiper of all people touting some underrated players, including NCC's Kyle Fiedorowicz.

I did some digging today to look into North Central's history regarding the NFL, and it's not very extensive. In all, there have been 4 players that spent at least part of their college careers in Naperville, and most of their NFL careers were short. Historically:
  • Ron Selesky (1987): Center. Played 2 NFL games.
  • Levert Carr (1969-73): OL/DL. Played 55 NFL games, starting all 14 games for Buffalo in 1971.
  • Jim Avery (1966, also attended Northern Illinois): Tight end. Played 1 NFL game.
  • Bus Mertes (1945-48?, also attended Iowa): Multiple positions. Ran for 1277 yards and 6 touchdowns, caught 19 passes for 182 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Not an illustrious list by any means, but there's some history there. And for Kyle Fiedorowicz, he may have a chance to contribute to an NFL team, being invited to the New Orleans Saints' rookie minicamp.

Looking at the unofficial depth chart for the Saints, there are only 2 tight ends, and David Thomas is a decent #2 guy behind this Jimmy Graham fellow. If there's an open roster spot, I don't think it's beyond reason to think the Kyle could make the squad. The Saints play 5 preseason games including the Hall of Fame game, so there's certainly opportunities for Kyle to showcase what he can do. I know the Saints mainly spread it out with Drew Brees, but they may have to consider splitting guys out, especially if you put Kyle and Jimmy Graham out there at the same time. Graham by himself is a matchup nightmare, but at 6'6", Kyle himself is hard to miss either. He could slip through some cracks in the defense, and he has decent speed (can run a sub-5 second 40, officially his best time was a 4.88). I remember a game in 2010 against Millikin where he slipped behind the defense, caught a pass, and was gone, prompting an excited "Kyle Fiedorowicz to the house!" call from me on WONC (go to the 1:03:30 mark for the call). In that pass-happy attack, he could potentially thrive.

Say what you will about the Saints following the bounty scandal. I'm a Packers fan, so I fear and respect the Saints as a rival NFC contender. But I will try to pay attention to their games this season and pull for a talented kid from a D-III school to put Naperville on the map again. Good luck Kyle!